Drolet Eco-35 Purchase and Install

[jumpingryan]

I am just posting up some pictures of my recent purchase of a Drolet Eco 35 Pellet stove. I purchased it used for $500 Canadian dollars ($383 USD at todays prices). It was 3 hours drive one way to get it, but it seemed like the best deal for a functional stove with auto ignition.

Included with the stove was the 3 inch flue pieces pictured and ash vacuum.

It was used in a 3-season cottage over several years, and supposedly had only 8 bags of pellets put through it. A buyer purchased the 3-season, and converted it to 4 season full time living and elected to use propane for heating.

This will be installed in my basement in Ontario, Canada. My home is heated by a nearly new 2 stage propane furnace on an eco-bee thermostat that uses geo-fencing and a schedule. The furnace fan also comes on as many minutes as I like per hour with the ecobee to circulate, and there are many cold air returns to the floor in the basement for good circulation.

The house is well insulated with newer windows. This stove will be to heat up the basement to make it more liveable, and perhaps off-set some of the propane cost for the whole house. I plan to run the wood pellet stove on a thermostat, and potentially on a second ecobee if possible.

Winters in my area are extreme and often cold, however I am not too concerned about power loss as I have a Generlink whole home generator plug in and a good quality generator that delivers clean power.

Dec average low temperature is -10 C / 14 F. and Jan/Feb low average is -16 C / 3 F. These temperatures do not include wind chill which can really freeze things down.

Keeping in mind those are monthly average low temperatures, I regularly see temperatures of - 35 celsius / - 31 F. This is mostly at night and in mornings.

I am starting this thread as I am debating flue location and design, and in my next post I will post some more pictures and a description of the my debate for best install.

 

[jumpingryan]

I am posting up my plan for flue install, and i am trying to decide between A & B. This is my first time with a pellet stove, however I do have experience with firewood burning in an old clay lined fireplace, a wood insert, and a wood stove at previous places I have lived. I am looking forward to giving pellet a try as I presently have to buy wood, and I figured if I have to buy wood, I might as well buy pellets.

I am posting a picture of the inside and outside of my basement. There is generous ceiling height, and the house is a raised ranch bungalow. That means about 4 feet below ground, and another 4 plus above ground before the first/only floor.

The reason for all the holes in the bricks is repairs. This was formerly the location of the oil flue, oil furnace, and Heat Recovery Ventilator (HRV). I am repairing the holes and re-pointing the brick work with the pile of spare bricks I have after removing the flue and all the air exchange/intake points. The furnace was also re-located to the side of the house when I converted to propane making these former vent holes and flue no longer needed.

I can easily relocate any plumbing and off-set 3- inches with any of my plans. I need to fix some plumbing errors on there from the previous owner anyways (the right pipe and the 45 drop with the "Y" at the bottom is asking for an eventual problem).

Position "B" is my preferred location mainly for the way the stove will look, near centred in the basement. However I am concerned about how close it is to the A/C, and assorted wiring.

Position "A" won't necessarily look horrible on the inside, but I am considering how B could be made to work with the purchase of extra flue. One thing I like about A is that nearly the whole pipe is located inside the warm envelope which should assist in the natural draw. It will also meet the minimum 3 feet vertical rise IAW the manual for the stove.

If you note my drawings, for B, I was considering a more up, out, and up again. The challenge is that it exceeds the max 15 feet length (each 90 or "T" is a 5 foot length in the calculation) With A, I am within the 15 feet as vertical rise is factored at 0.5 feet. A solution for A would be to do some or all in 4 inch pipe, but I am always looking to re-use, and potentially save money.

I will be putting in outside air, however I don't see any major issues with finding a position to draw from within clearances. Drawing air can be closer to the A/C as they won't be competing. I have lived here for 7 years and snow typically doesn't build up next to the house so I am ok with the minimums for air intake (12 inches plus).

One point to note for my American friends on here with regards to Selkirk Model PL venting: In Canada a horizontal termination can be 3 feet of a building opening (window) or air inlet of another appliance. In the US, it is 4 feet.

Questions:

1) Has anybody painted pipe as earlier pictured with high temperature paint (black) for both indoor and/or outdoor parts? If I go with "A", I want to ensure everything looks the part.

2) Anybody see any issues with clearances on either position? I will note the A/C will be covered in winter with those typical store bought covers. I did consider potential for sparks, and I want to ensure that I have my clearances.

3) Anybody have any suggestions or cautions on my plan for either option?

4) I will be re-doing the back portion (removing that ledge and going with a flat wall). I am considering man-made stone on plywood, however I am also considering drywall. I am going to assume that man-made stone won't change the clearances at all with regards to pushing the stove closer to the wall?

In closing, I will be getting this inspected by a WETT certified guy for insurance purposes. However, I am working to keep costs down by doing it myself as I am handy enough to do it.

Thank-you in advance for any tips you can provide.