My Hearth Just Cracked! Hopefully not a horror story in the making

[TakeTheCann0lis]

I just bought a house in Vermont, and bought a used Defiant II. I had my contractor install it, and in keeping some of our costs low, instead of installing it on a proper hearth, we installed it on a center portion of 2" pool table slate. I fired it up for the first time tonight and noticed that i was having some troubles getting it to stay hot with the doors shut so I jumped onto the internet and found this forum. Anyhow as I was reading up on my stove, I heard a loud crack about 3x as loud as a .22, and looked over at the stove to see that the slate had cracked front to back dead center under my stove. I'm letting it die down for the night, but in hindsight, I probably should have A) inspected the stove on my own before buying it (I just kinda looked at it and said, yep it looks good), B) Had a proper chimney company come and install it, or at least C) read up on the forums before lighting it. I'm still crossing my fingers because their are 4 logs in it, but I figured I'd share the story.

What are the minimun recommended specs for a hearth under a stove?

Signed....

Foolish in Vermont

 

[Bigg_Redd]

I just bought a house in Vermont, and bought a used Defiant II. I had my contractor install it, and in keeping some of our costs low, instead of installing it on a proper hearth, we installed it on a center portion of 2" pool table slate. I fired it up for the first time tonight and noticed that i was having some troubles getting it to stay hot with the doors shut so I jumped onto the internet and found this forum. Anyhow as I was reading up on my stove, I heard a loud crack about 3x as loud as a .22, and looked over at the stove to see that the slate had cracked front to back dead center under my stove. I'm letting it die down for the night, but in hindsight, I probably should have A) inspected the stove on my own before buying it (I just kinda looked at it and said, yep it looks good), B) Had a proper chimney company come and install it, or at least C) read up on the forums before lighting it. I'm still crossing my fingers because their are 4 logs in it, but I figured I'd share the story.

What are the minimun recommended specs for a hearth under a stove?

Signed....

Foolish in Vermont

Were you burning pine?

 

[humpin iron]

THANK YOU for being honest about your mistake. Look around and find an NFI certifed installer up there to help you. Start at NFI.org

 

[Fsappo]

Thats a fine stove, providing it doesnt have any cracks in it. I'd check the fireback closely, thats where the defiants would normally have their first sign of trouble. The NFI certified suggestion is a good one

 

[drdoct]

hmmm, Stoves weigh more than pool balls. I've never actually seen the slate that they put in a pool table. Just from the sound of it I would say your floor isn't perfectly level and when you combine heat and weight together you get a break where it's uneven and unsupported. Post a few pics of your setup and you might get more than you wanted in terms of what went wrong. Installing wood stoves correctly isn't a cheap thing to do unless you've already got the right chimney and hearth. Other than that it usually exceeds the stove purchase. As far as having your stove burn correctly, check your wood to see if it's dry. When was it cut and split?

 

[TakeTheCann0lis]

So yes, I agree with DrDoct, the floor wasn't perfectly level and during heating and cooling the uneven weight split the slate. I'm going to post a picture as soon as my wife gets back with the camera today, but the slate is very beefy. It's 2", and I thought would be a nice heat shield. I definitely didn't do any research before I bought the stove. I knew it was probably too big for my house, but I figured I could use it as a fireplace. Anyhow, I was sweating bullets last night. I need to figure out how to make this work. We're already at the end of our financial line from the renovations.

Thanks for the link to the NFI website.

More to follow.

 

[elmoleaf]

Get a manual for that stove. If the hearth requires more than spark protection, then 2" of slate over a combustible surface (wood framing/subfloor) is no good. Also, get a bottom heat shield for the stove or make one from sheet metal.

 

[Skier76]

We were over in your neck of the woods Saturday at Mt. Snow for Oktoberfest.

Here's to hoping you get things sorted out. Keep us posted.

 

[firefighterjake]

Get a manual for that stove. If the hearth requires more than spark protection, then 2" of slate over a combustible surface (wood framing/subfloor) is no good. Also, get a bottom heat shield for the stove or make one from sheet metal.

+1

Also, as others have said, it sounds like the floor may not be level. An option to fix this might be to place the slate on a layer or two of 3/4 inch plywood and "cement" the slate to the plywood and use an appropriately colored grout to fix the crack in the slate so it is not noticeable. The key, however, is to make sure of what your R value requirement is for the hearth since the slate may or may not be enough . . . and in either case, if this stove has an optional heat shield it may make sense to install one to prevent further cracks.