Hearth Pad

[Sophie]

We are making our own hearth pad and will be using tile on concrete board. Should a subframe be built or should a plywood layer be added or will that make the pad too heavy?

 

[sydney1963]

I made my own this summer 36” x 32”. Cost me around $60.00. You will need:

36” x 32” piece of plywood (had to buy the whole sheet but HD cut it for me)
same size piece of cement board (Durock-1 layer, bought the whole sheet $9.98ish and cut it myself)
4-16"x16" tiles
8-4"x4" tiles
pre mixed grout (small container)
and I used 3 long pieces of hardwood flooring for the edge.

Screw the cement board to the plywood, grout the cement board, stick the tiles to it, fill in the spaces with grout. Let dry.
Got it all at HD. Looks great! And yes it is quite heavy for me (woman, but man would have no problem).

 

[flashbang]

Used only plywood and it was heavy.
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/23995/

 

[Nic36]

Do you know the dimensions of you hearth pad and how thick it has to be? Mine was approximately 39" X 39" with porcelain tile on top, 3 layers of Durock, and plywood on the bottom. I had already built it for another stove and ended buying a different one that did not need all that.

It was quite heavy, but I could carry it by myself.

 

[Sophie]

Those are both really nice stove pads.

Mine needs to be 36" X 36 1/2". We did buy backerboard and plywood - I was wondering if it would bend when it is moved if it is built without a frame underneath, but it apparently that does not seem to be a problem.

 

[roadrat]

I Built mine with 1/4 inch plywood then 1 layer of durock and then some porcelane tile, held it all toghther with liquid nails.
the plywood gives it a little more stiffness and keeps the durock from scrathing the wood floor.

bill

 

[Nic36]

Once everything is all together, it should be somewhat rigid. Yours will definitely be lighter than mine, so I don't think moving it around will be much of a problem.

 

[Sophie]

Many thanks for the info. I am relieved we don't have to worry about a subframe.

Thanks again.

 

[imacman]

I made my own this summer 36” x 32”. Cost me around $60.00. Looks great! And yes it is quite heavy for me (woman, but man would have no problem).

Nice job on the hearth Sydney!!

 

[tinkabranc]

Nice hearthpad Sydney!
I love the slate colors- looks great with black stoves

 

[Jester]

Ive got to trim mine out yet, Ive got the oak but havent had time to cut it yet. What I did was use a piece of 1" fiberboard subfloor (needed it this thick to screw the hardibacker to) then a piece of 3/8 hardibacker. I used a 6" square tile. Got a box from Cheapo Depot on sale for 21 bucks. Make sure you use the flexibond morter so when you move it its more forgiving. I think all in all I have about $50 into mine. I didnt use a subframe because I thought it would distribute the weight better going right on the floor. I didnt have any problem moving it from the basement to the living room.

 

[teamorange]

I needed to get my stove up off the ground about 4 inch's so I built mine using 2 x 4's for the frame, then plywood, then cement board. I framed the top of it using hardwood molding. I then used porcelain tiles (HD told me not to use ceramic tiles). Grouted. Looks great, I will post some pics of everything soon. Last thing I need to do is buy some really thin plywood (there is another name for it) to put along the sides to cover up the 2 x 4's, plywood and cement board you can see, then use some of the little wedge molding to add to the floor and side of the hearth to dress it up some more...

I guess the main reason of this post was to let everyone know about the porcelain tiles. They said not to use ceramic. Maybe they will crack? Not sure why. Anyone used ceramic?

 

[DiggerJim]

I guess the main reason of this post was to let everyone know about the porcelain tiles. They said not to use ceramic. Maybe they will crack? Not sure why. Anyone used ceramic?

Nothing wrong with ceramic tiles. Actually porcelain ones may prove to be more brittle in this application - hard to tell. They're harder but you've got point pressure under the feet of the stove - depends on how much jostling it gets. I wouldn't think it matters after the stove is in place. Those slider pads under the feet would help in either case to make it easier to move for cleaning. Ceramic has a lower k value though but your thickness of Durock, etc. should make that a non-issue. Most of the ones I've seen are ceramic tiled.

 

[Jester]

When I was looking at tile and I told the guys at the tile place it was for a heart pad for a pellet stove they told me to go with porcelean because the color is more than baked on the top like ceramic. They said if I were to drop a log on them loading the stove ( we have really dense pellets here in New England) and chipped the porcelean I wouldnt notice it as much as ceramic. Obviously the pellets wouldnt chip a tile, but theres plenty of other things that could. I asked about thermal issues and he told me that either would stand up as well.