Need help installing a Harman XXV

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engstrom

New Member
Apr 6, 2011
4
Huntington, Vermont
Hello everyone, my first post...
I'm buying a demo Harman XXV from the dealer tomorrow and am going to attempt installing the stove myself.
I am going to get the vent kit that includes the fresh air kit in one thimble. The stove will be kiddie cornered. My plan is to place the thimble in the corner of the wall and simply go out the interior wall with a 45 degree elbow and then outside. My outside connections will have a cleanout T with a 2' rise to get the exhaust away from the FAK.

I do have a few concerns... It looks like the outlet of the stove is about the same height as wall outlets. Has anyone run into cutting your hole only to find out that you've got romex right behind where you cut your big new hole? Are there any tricks for getting your hole aligned properly? Do I need to frame the thimble, or does attaching it to the outside plywood provide enough support?

My other concern is cutting through the siding. What do people use to cut the siding to accommodate? Do you need J-channel? I've never done any siding work before so I don't even know how it attaches. I've been looking for a good how-to video, but can't seem to find anything.

Perhaps I should just pay the shop $375 to do it for me?
 
engstrom said:
Hello everyone, my first post...
I'm buying a demo Harman XXV from the dealer tomorrow and am going to attempt installing the stove myself.
I am going to get the vent kit that includes the fresh air kit in one thimble. The stove will be kiddie cornered. My plan is to place the thimble in the corner of the wall and simply go out the interior wall with a 45 degree elbow and then outside. My outside connections will have a cleanout T with a 2' rise to get the exhaust away from the FAK.

I do have a few concerns... It looks like the outlet of the stove is about the same height as wall outlets. Has anyone run into cutting your hole only to find out that you've got romex right behind where you cut your big new hole? Are there any tricks for getting your hole aligned properly? Do I need to frame the thimble, or does attaching it to the outside plywood provide enough support?

My other concern is cutting through the siding. What do people use to cut the siding to accommodate? Do you need J-channel? I've never done any siding work before so I don't even know how it attaches. I've been looking for a good how-to video, but can't seem to find anything.

Perhaps I should just pay the shop $375 to do it for me?

The XXV is very heavy. When you pay for an install it usually includes delivery. I would suggest the $375 option and have some cookies and milk ready for the guys.

Eric

Welcome aboard, grab a bag of pellets on your way inside.
 
For $375 I don't think you'll get J-channel for your siding. You'll likely get a hole, 4 screws and a ton of silicone to make it look "pretty". I'll be redoing my "professional install" this summer. If you're handy, I'd pay them to delivery and still do the install myself. My 2 cents.
 
vinyl is not that hard to work with... I'd suggest a vinyl block instead of the straight jchannel. It's not that hard to install the vent itself, it's a 6" square hole in the wall. Cut the vinyl siding w/ a circular saw, blade turned backwards. Cut the sheathing w/ a sawzall. Do the interior drywall w/ a drywall knife 1st so you can ID any wires.. usually there is enough slack in the romex to work it around the pass thru.
 
summit said:
vinyl is not that hard to work with... I'd suggest a vinyl block instead of the straight jchannel. It's not that hard to install the vent itself, it's a 6" square hole in the wall. Cut the vinyl siding w/ a circular saw, blade turned backwards. Cut the sheathing w/ a sawzall. Do the interior drywall w/ a drywall knife 1st so you can ID any wires.. usually there is enough slack in the romex to work it around the pass thru.

+1 on turning the blade around...but you might find that the hole may be 9" for that pellet thimble.
I've had good results cutting vinyl with a metal cutting blade on a sawzall...
Layout the thimble on the siding & add about 3/8" in every direction
to leave room for the J-Channel to trim it out & J-channel it like you would a window...
Top first, both sides, & then the bottom...
 
A Razor blade and a propane torch work well. Have done this twice. I heat the H#LL out of the blade and it slices through the siding like butter. As Summit stated above, there is normally enough slack in the romex to move it around. My whole outlet cover was in the way. Took a little tweaking. But still got it through the wall.

As for the siding, make sure you cut a square, not a circle. Cutting the square will allow the outside section of the thimble to fit inside of your vinyl siding. Then with a little silicone, you seal it up. When you cut a circle, the square section sits on the siding. Then Copious amounts of silicone will be needed to fill the voids.
 
Thanks everyone!
I'm going to attempt it myself. Picking it up on Saturday. I've got two men coming to help me unload and install.
I picked up J-channel that matches our siding perfectly. I finished my hearth pad last weekend and it came out pretty well:
217694_1795928311265_1631455221_1715874_5414682_n.jpg

You can see the outlets in the photo. The exhaust will actually be going on the wall to the right, but have a feeling the outlets are daisy chained with the outlets on the right wall. My hearth pad is 1.75" tall and I believe the exhaust outlet is around 8". I haven't measured the outlet off the ground, but it's going to be close. I will DEFINITELY be cutting the drywall first!

A torch and a knife sounds like a great idea! I also have a circular saw that I could flip the blade on, but that still sounds a little scary! Hah!
My plan is as follows...
I'll place the stove temporarily on the hearth pad.
Install the piping and trace the circle where the pipe wants to go through the wall.
Cut the cutout of the thimble centered on the traced hole with a sheetrock saw.
Cut and separate the insulation.
Drill a pilot hole to the outside
Remove the siding that will be affected by the thimble.
Continue to cut the thimble hole with a sawzall.
Mount and caulk the thimble.
Install J-channel around the thimble.
Re-install siding to the house.
Mount exhaust pipe with support as necessary.
Attach Fresh Air Kit to thimble.
Re-attach exhaust from stove to Thimble.
Fill with pellets and give it a ride :)

Sound about right?
 
Add some high temp silicone to the stove adapter and internal joints. Then a little silicone or caulk to match your viynl siding to seal up the outside air in your thimble. Other than that. Get a good surge protector and your in there. Good luck.
 
I tackled the job last weekend and it was a piece of cake... Took me roughly 2.5-3 hours all said and done. I had two guys helping me lift and carry.

First determined the best spot and laid the hearth pad I built:
IMG_3503.JPG


One thing I did forget was a long wood bit, but no worries. I had extensions:
IMG_3504.JPG


Cutting holes through your house can always be scary... What was once a perfect wall, now has a hole.
IMG_3511.JPG


The outside install detail. The thimble is a combo unit, drawing fresh air. The exhaust has a 3' rise and the outlet is 20" from the side of the house. It is not 48" from the window, but since I'm using a FAK, I can get away with it. Cut the vinyl with some vinyl shears. Installed J-channel around the thimble and sealed with clear silicone. All piping has built in seals. I did RTV the stove adapter and where the pipe met the thimble. I also siliconed the FAK inlet from the Thimble to prevent it from pulling out:
2011-04-16_16-30-20_87.jpg


Fired it up and she was ready to go!
IMG_3514.JPG

I probably should've waited for the silicone to harden a bit. The FAK was sucking air right next to a joint I had sealed with RTV. It drew the fumes into the house and started to get a little light headed... Ooops.

I've put about 3 bags of hardwood pellets through it so far. Hardly any ash. Puts out a decent amount of heat, but has a hard time getting any heat to my bedroom which is on the opposite end, 2nd floor of the house. Not a huge deal, as that room only gets heated for a couple hours in the morning and at night. Regardless, we love the stove! We almost can't wait for it to get cold again.... heh
 
Nice looking install. Don't forget about a surge protector. As far as moving air. Entree air and Suncourt both make corner fans for doorways and through the wall type fans. I have the corner Entree air fans and they do a great job at equalizing the temps throughout the house.
You will enjoy that stove for many years to come. Be prepared for the sickness that follows. Its addicting!
 
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