Hearth Pad Project Complete

[Parallax]

Posting this separate from the thread where I had previously requested advice on buying a pad. After reviewing all the options, I built it myself. Really happy with how it turned out. First of all, it's nicer than pads that were as much as $700. Second, it wasn't expensive. Total cost approx. $150 and I could have easily kept it below $100 without sacrificing the look. I chose to put it on a very high quality piece of furniture grade plywood to keep it very stiff but I could have gotten by with a standard 3/4 inch or even 1/2 inch piece. This also included the purchase of the tools -- except for a tile saw. Lowe's did all the cuts without charge. It took some time but it was a fun project and now, if a tile chips or a grout line cracks, I know how to fix it.

It's actually better looking than this picture. The photo makes it look like the grout spills outside the lines. In real life, it does not. Where it appears in the photo to be grout, it's just variations in the color of the tile. For some reason, the camera made it look like extra grout. The tile is a natural slate. If anyone needs advice on doing a project like this, just ask.

 

[webby3650]

So you used high end 3/4" plywood and cement board under the tile? Assuming you also have a solid sub-floor, that should be very solid. It looks like the tile hangs over on the angled areas, is that an optical illusion?

 

[Parallax]

No cement board. I asked the stove dealer and he said it's not necessary with this stove. It is a solid sub-floor; the house is well built.

The tile extends over the edge. I used a ceramic tile underneath, just shy of 3/4 inch thick. I didn't want to use a stone like slate in a place where it's bearing a bit of load and needs to compress without cracking or crumbling. Even with the ceramic tile, the horizontal slate tiles still extend a bit over the vertical tiles.

 

[begreen]

Cement board is also for a better bond to the tile.

 

[webby3650]

The cement board really has nothing to do with the the stove. It allows the tile to bond. Tile will bond poorly to plywood, slate can be especially difficult to bond. Do you use glue or polymer fortified thinset?

 

[Parallax]

Ah, got it. I used a thinset that I was told would work with plywood. The bond seems to be quite strong. This was my first time doing tile work, and I think I mixed it too thin but it dried well anyway. About half way through I mixed a second batch and, later, a third -- and each subsequent mix was better than the previous. Same with the grout. I had one grout joint crack, probably because the mix had too much water. I checked the tile and it seemed real tight. So I got my dremel and ground out the bad grout and then redid that line. After that it seemed fine. There's a slight difference in color between the two sets of grout but no one would ever notice unless I told them.

 

[HybridFyre]

Hopefully it will be fine. Thinly mixed mortar tends to get brittle over time. You may be fine since you probably won't be walking on the pad very often if at all. I'd be careful about dumping firewood on it though.

 

[Parallax]

Hopefully it will be fine. Thinly mixed mortar tends to get brittle over time. You may be fine since you probably won't be walking on the pad very often if at all. I'd be careful about dumping firewood on it though.

Thanks. Will take your advice to heart. And if anything breaks, I now know how to fix it. I find that very cool.

 

[Owen1508]

Looks very nice

 

[Parallax]

Thanks. Here it is with the stove.