New woodstove install, likely Ashford 30

[ben94122]

I'm having a local dealer install a woodstove in our new manufactured home, and wanted to run the plan by the forum to see if there was anything I'm missing.

We're in the North Sierra Nevada mountains, about 3500 feet elevation. Mild winters, teens overnight for a few months; a few feet of snow. We have a Bosch 5 ton heat pump, but hope to heat primarily with wood.

The house is 2400 square feet, with a big open kitchen/living/dining room in one half and bedrooms in the other half. 9 foot flat ceilings. 2x6 framing with R19 insulation, r44 ceiling, r33 floor. The heat pump ducts run inside the insulation in floor and ceiling. I had them put a return air duct in the great room, (ceiling) 15' or so from the woodstove site.

I'm planning to have the local BK dealer install a freestanding woodstove, most likely an Ashford 30. We have a corner install in the middle of the house, on the side of the great room (floor plan attached).


The installer plans to run ICC Ultrablack double wall solid pack stovepipe to the ceiling, then ICC Excel Class A pipe through the attic and out the roof (5 in 12) near the peak, should be 15' straight shot from the top of the appliance with no bends.

We'll have an OAK that runs straight down into the crawlspace through 4" dryer duct, and because it is a manufactured home we'll bolt the stove to the floor.

We will eventually build an elevated hearth on 2x8 framing topped with cement board (probably Durock Next gen), then finished with nearby river rock. However, I dont have time to build the hearth before the install. We're planning to have him install the stove with just ember protection (a few bare sheets of durock on the cork floor), then build the hearth next summer--move the stove for a few weeks, telescope the pipe up by a foot, and plug the stove back in once the hearth is built.

I have 2 cords of 8% MC pine and a cord of 12% oak split, stacked, covered, and waiting for someplace hot to go, with a few more cords seasoning for next winter.

Any advice would be welcome.

 

[Ashful]

Sounds like you’ve thought things thru pretty well. No advice here, other than to say I love my Ashford 30’s. Make sure they’re newer ones, not old floor stock, the early 30.1’s had an issue with ash plug location over ash pan.

You will not have any issues heating 100% with one Ashford 30, and you will be able to dial the burn time to very predictable and consistent burn times from 6 to 36 hours, on hard wood.

 

[ben94122]

I came on this forum a year ago with vague plans to get a Lopi Rockport because my wife liked the way it looked. I've learned an amazing amount here--thanks for the thoughtful replies and comments!!

 

[Highbeam]

5 ton heat pump sounds huge! Your install sounds perfect. A lot like me mine. Same 4” duct to crawl space and all vertical pipe. Even though our winters are relatively mild, they are long so I go through at least 4 cords per year.

 

[ben94122]

The heat pump is mostly for air conditioning in the summer...thanks for the encouragement!

 

[Ashful]

5 tons doesn't sound out of line at all to me, assuming this is a regular old air source heat pump with AC.

 

[Poindexter]

Nice setup. Do the slaves sleep in the bathroom, or do they have a bedroom to access? Hadn't seen that term before, maybe a California thing.

I agree a BK 30 box can probably handle your heating needs at or near 100%. Remember to tell your insurance agent you are _supplementing_ the existing heat pump with your new stove then supplement to your hearts content. If I was on that floor plan, among the BK 30s I would go with the Ashford and the fan kit from day one. You can put a heat powered fan on even an Ashford directly over the combustor, but the factory fan kit is awesome fro spreading heat around multiple square feet.

I have ICC/eXcel pipe, 5 or 6 years old now. Not a single issue with it ever and the warranty is nice.

Are you sure 8% MC on your pine? You have split some splits open and measured what was the middle plane a few moments before and measured 8%?

If you are absolutely sure you have multiple cords of softwood under 11%MC, please send a PM to user BKVP, tell him I sent you, and let him know that you Ben get to be "that guy" this season. Running fuel under 11% is problematic. It can be done, Chris got me through 8 cords of it a couple seasons ago and I have been careful to not get my wood that dry ever again.

If you are much for barbecue you might want to buy some greener pine to mix with your 8% stuff and save the oak for the cooking pit; Just saying. Talk to Chris. He will only ever buy you one beer for the rest of your life, but he wants you to be happy with your stove.

For 2400sqft 3 cords might be kinda on the low end for annual consumption, but if your home is sealed up tight it will make a heck of a dent in your heating bill.

No bends in chimney is a good thing. I like being able to raise the telescope pipe off the stove collar, look up and see the entire run without having to go outdoors or get a ladder.

Not sure why you would build an elevated hearth later. Aesthetics? OK, whatever.

This year while you can, do the ember protection only thing, all the stove requires. At some point this winter bring the pad off your wife's chaise lounge into the great room - week after Thanksgiving maybe- and lay it on the floor in front of the stove an hour or two before she gets home. Turn the stove thermostat up to high. Then go do man stuff all nonchalant. Whistle tunelessly every now and again. Maybe a toothpick. Flannel shirt, sleeves rolled up. Sprinkle a little fresh sawdust in your arm hair. Work boots. Be doing something outdoors when she gets home, splitting wood for next year or shoveling snow or whatever. Give her a good 15 minutes on that warm pad on the floor in front of the stove before you come inside.

My current hearth extends 22 horizontal inches from the front of the stove, and is 2.5 inches above the rest of the floor. My next hearth will be as close to smooth with the rest of the floor as possible, and will extend at least 40 " horizontal from the stove, likely ceramic tile. Your mileage, of course, may vary.

 

[MAD777]

I like a raised hearth. To each his own, but I think it looks nice. There are a few practical reasons for it. You don't have to bend over so far to load & tend to the stove. Also it keeps small children from absent - mindedly running into the stove. By raising the stove, it could benefit the installation of an OAK, since the intake shouldn't be higher than the stove. Finally, in the off season, provides a perch for the kids or family pet to sit.

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