height of the hearth?

[tedzap]

I am thinking that a tall hearth which put the woodstove a couple feet off the ground would be much easier to load and keep clean. I have three 60" ceiling fans in a 24x32 room, so I am not too concerned about cold floors.

Is there a good reason not to have it up off the ground?

Thanks,
-Ted

 

[TreePapa]

Check the mfg's required clearance from the top of the stove to combustibles, i.e., your ceiling. If you have 8 ft. ceilings, you may not be able to raise the stove as much as you want. If your ceilings are 10 ft. or higher, probably no prob.

Peace,
- Sequoia

 

[tedzap]

good point. The only reference I found in the Jotul manual had to do with placement in an alcove. It says that if I use a double wall pipe (which I planned to do) then the minimum clearance is 40". With my 9' ceilings this would equate to a max hearth height of 40" off the ground.

 

[TreePapa]

maybe some of the install pros here can chime in?

 

[tedzap]

In the "CLEARANCES TO COMBUSTIBLES" section of the Jotul manual, I find only one place where they mention the "height above the stove" - that is in the Alcove section.

Here is what they say for a:

Minimum unprotected alcove:
Assumes-
Top exit, single wall pipe, and stove's rear heatshield.
Minimum alcove width = 71” (1805mm)
Maximum alcove depth = 40” (1015mm)
height above the top of the stove = 68” (1730mm)



They then go on to list the clearances in an alcove if you use double wall pipe:
Minimum unprotected alcove:
Assumes-
Top exit, single wall pipe, and stove's rear heatshield.

Minimum alcove width = 35” (890mm)
Maximum alcove depth = 24” (610mm)
height above the top of the stove = 40” (1015mm)




This is confusing to me, because the stove is 27-7/8" tall. If you use a singlewall pipe and have a hearth that is more than 1/8" tall then an 8' ceiling isn't tall enough for proper clearance.



My ceiling is 9', and I plan to use double wall pipe, so I calculate that my hearth could be a max height of 40" (obviously more than I would want).

The question still remains, is there any reason *not* to raise the stove up a couple of feet for easier loading/lighting/cleaning? It makes sense to me, and I guess that I am surprised I don't recall seeing raised hearths.


Thanks,
-Ted