Minimum Clearance to Combustibles

[Cavalier35]

Hello,

I have a Superior DRT2035TEP natural gas fireplace. It’s been used for about five years and was installed when the house was built.

I ended up removing the backer board and tile. Upon replacement, I decided to use tong and groove wood on top of 1/2 in plywood.

The top stand-off are shown in the manual as 0”.

As it gets pretty hot in the surroundings, will plywood / tongue & groove be safe? I didn’t change any of the tolerances or spacing. I just realized the backer board was used and not sure if that’s code or because tile was used previously?

Thank you.

 

[DAKSY]

You should be OK, but if you're concerned, check the temps of the wood with an IR thermometer.
Can you pit your hand on the "hot" wood surface & hold it there? if so, that would be a good sign
that while it's hot, it's not hot enough to combust.

 

[Cavalier35]

Hi Daksy - the top of the fireplace is currently about 147 f and the first board above it is about 130 f. This is after running this am for 45 minutes.

I’m guessing the heat off the front will be hottest based on the design of these and the way they are insulated metal boxes?

 

[DAKSY]

Those temps are acceptable in my book. The hottest part on the outside of the unit is the glass.
The metal just above the glass will also get quite hot.
Most of these units are "air" insulated. The firebox has passages (gaps) around it to allow
air to convect or to be moved by the blower. This air cools the firebox as is picks up heat
for room distribution.

 

[Cavalier35]

Thank you for the info and quick reply.

Being the specs shown in the manual and based on how it was built prior, plus the temp ranges, have me feeling like it should be fine as well.