BUilding my own Hearth

[cadeshearth]

I am trying to build my own hearth and have some questions

First off I was told the hearth needs to have 1 inch of "Air Space" under it so here is the design I came up with so far.

I am planning on taking a piece of backerboard (http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?acti...Id=75519-11863-LBR-75519&detail=cr&lpage=none) and covering it in insulation (http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=13358-56291-BP48025&lpage=none) than nailing that on some concrete bricks for support, then putting mortor, grout, tile on top of that, than around it and running some rock (http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=69034-86216-MRLS26&lpage=none) around it for astetics, than finally (And this may be the final flaw and my primary question in this design) placing it on top of my carpet.

My main question is do I HAVE to remove the carpet underneath? or will this insulatio be enough. my oven specs say to have 16 inches on hearth in the front, I am going to do 20.

Than do you notice any other problems with my design? If so please help!

Thanx!

 

[summit]

what kind of stove are you installing on top of it?

 

[fossil]

^^ The stove manufacturer's manual should have all the details about what's required in terms of insulative quality (r-value) and clearances all around the appliance. What you're describing might be way overkill in terms of effort and cost...or maybe not. Depends on the stove. In any case, I'd never even consider placing any sort of hearth for a woodstove over the top of carpet...for a number of reasons. Rick

 

[deck2]

Like Rick said check your manual and see what your stoves requirements are for floor protection-- mine only required ember protection only so I put a nice 3 inch thick bluestone slab on top of the hardwood floor(reinforced with a few added supports in the basement just in case)

 

[Wood Heat Stoves]

download a Hearthstone woodstove manual for free from thier site,
hearthstonetoves.com

they have r values broken down by material, and advice on hearh construction examples. here's some cut and paste to digest
if you need more help, email me

Floor protector’s come with various types of
specifications. To convert a floor protector’s specification
to an R-value, do one of the following:
• If the R-value is given, use that value—no
conversion is needed.
• If a K-factor is given with a required thickness
(T) in inches, use this formula: R-value = 1/K x
T
• If a C-factor is given, use the formula: R-value =
1/C
To determine the R-value of the proposed alternate floor
protector:
• Use either the K-factor or the C-factor formula
explained above to convert specifications not
expressed as R-values.
• For multiple layers of floor protectors, simply
add the R-values of each layer to determine the
overall R-value of the layers.
If the overall R-value of your setup is greater than the
R-value of the specified floor protector, then your setup is
acceptable.

Noncombustible Material Thickness R-value
Gypsum or plaster board1 1/2″ 0.45
Wallboard, Wonderboard, or
Durock1
1/2″ 0.20
Ceramic board (Fiberfrax or Micor)1 1/2″ 1.10
Nominal solid clay brick1 1″ 0.20
Ceramic wall or floor tile1 1/4″ 0.01
Mineral wool insulation2 1″ 3.12
Cement mortar2 1″ 0.20
Horizontal still air2 * 1/8″ 0.92