Ember Protection TN10

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M

MiddleCoast

New Member
Oct 5, 2021
12
Illinois
Hey all. We are installing a True North TN10 on a hardwood floor.
Reading through the manual I'm a little confused on the floor protection. This is what it says,
"Ember Protection: The stove may be installed on a combustible floor, provided ember protection made from a non-combustible material (a minimum K value of 23.7 btu/ft h °F /the equivalent of 20 Gauge steel) is used."

Are they saying the pad needs to have at least the same K value as 20 gauge steel? I tried to do the K value to R value conversion and came up with a pretty small number.

Does anyone have experience with the TN10? What protection did you use? I'd like the thinnest possible to avoid stubbed toes.

I reached out the True North but have not heard back.

Thanks for the feedback.
 
Almost anything that will provide a solid, noncombustible surface will work. Brick is possible if mortared onto cement board or loose on top of a sheet of 26 ga. steel. Tile on cement board also is common.
 
I've seen these glass hearth pads used which look nice.
morsoe.com

Morsø Glass Hearth Plates

Morsø's glass hearth plates are made from 6 mm tempered, transparent or black glass.
morsoe.com morsoe.com

I have brick for my hearth, on the walls as well as on the floor.
 
Cement board would suffice, but I would put some protectors under each foot so that it doesn't crush the cement board. A square of steel would do.
 
MiddleCoast said:
Roger, thanks. Was hoping to find something thinner that would suffice their requirement. I guess I need to figure out what "K value of 23.7 btu/ft h °F" translates to for other materials.
Click to expand...
20 gauge is super thin, it's just 0.0375" thick. Almost too thin. I'd be really careful about denting it with the stove feet. I can't think of anything else that's even close other than aluminum foil. Single wall stove pipe is only 22 gauge and that's just 0.03125" thick and it comes in a roll!
 
Nah, 20 ga is fine. Try cutting it with standard shears. It's not light stuff. Back in my sheetmetal days I worked with commercial 24 and 22 ga. It tires your hands out quickly. I would not cut 20ga by hand. The standard sheetmetal guage for home ductwork and warm air pipe is 26 ga. Our metal garage building's gauge is even thinner IIRC.
 
Highbeam said:
20 gauge is super thin, it's just 0.0375" thick. Almost too thin. I'd be really careful about denting it with the stove feet. I can't think of anything else that's even close other than aluminum foil. Single wall stove pipe is only 22 gauge and that's just 0.03125" thick and it comes in a roll!
Click to expand...
I think it's 3/8" thick. https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/15/206. I can't imagine cutting it with anything other than a grinder.
 
Highbeam said:
No, you’re off a decimal. 20 gauge is like ductwork thin.
Click to expand...
No ductwork I have ever worked on has been that thick. Most all residential is 26ga. The commercial work was 24 and sometimes 22.
 
begreen said:
No, 20 ga steel is .0359" thick unless it's galvanized which is a little thicker, or about a millimeter thick. 3/8" would be .375" thick.
Click to expand...
ahhh I got the decimal wrong and was looking at 3/80 and thought the "0" was aught. Didn't realize they were saying 3 divided by 80. Thanks!
 
If 20 ga is the minimum required for the TN10, which is roughly 1/32". I can go to 11 ga , which is 1/8", and feel good about it not being a tripping hazard for our 6 year old.
 
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1/8" plate would be fine. Radius the front corners with a grinder for a more finished look and to eliminate a possible sharp corner to catch small toes on.
 
Thanks everyone for the help. I went with the 11ga steel and powder coated. Really happy with how it turned out.

[Hearth.com] Ember Protection TN10
 
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Looks great. How is the little fellow running?
 
Running solid!
We have a small bungalow and it's in a small living room; really happy with the heat output. I'm able to dial it in to about 400 degrees and we don't get sweated out. Bonus, it heats our whole house. Furnace doesn't flip on when we run it (though we find a cooler house temp preferable).
 
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