Don't laugh but I have swung another direction. I got a close look at the Lopi Liberty today -- big brother to the Lopi Endeavor -- and I really liked it! I may pull the trigger on it tomorrow. My wife and I got serious with a tape measure and documentation and found the Explorer 3 just did not fit in our space well at all. I think we'll be happy with the Liberty. It looks and feels really well built! Also, I have a bunch of well seasoned wood that is 18 to 20 inches and it wouldn't have fit in the Endeavor. My stove guy wants to install non-insulated flexible stainless steel lining in my chimney for $850. Now I have to go research varieties of that just to be sure. Thanks for all the advice! I'll let you know in late January how it turns out.
Noob question: Is an Explorer 3 just too darn big?
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Woody Stover
Minister of Fire
Whew, that thing throws a ton of heat! If it runs as low as in the video, that would be great but it looks like you may have a tall chimney so you may need a pipe damper. They run one in a shop here, the fan runs quiet. Read up here, it seems to me that I've seen that it likes to run hot. A neighbor has one, but his house was hot with his last stove, too.
Do your research..there's no hurry, is there? Oh, and you definitely want insulation on the liner. @bholler says it's very rare to see a chimney that is up to code without one. Hey, he's in PA..maybe he can install it for you, and you know he'll do it right.
Whew, that thing throws a ton of heat! If it runs as low as in the video, that would be great but it looks like you may have a tall chimney so you may need a pipe damper. They run one in a shop here, the fan runs quiet. Read up here, it seems to me that I've seen that it likes to run hot. A neighbor has one, but his house was hot with his last stove, too.
Do your research..there's no hurry, is there? Oh, and you definitely want insulation on the liner. @bholler says it's very rare to see a chimney that is up to code without one. Hey, he's in PA..maybe he can install it for you, and you know he'll do it right.
Well, there is a little rush in that I don't want to get a nice new wood stove in March! I'm at 3rd week of Jan for the install as it is. That being said, I've been obsessively reading up for a month, so I feel good about it. My terra cotta chimney liner already passes inspection so I figure adding the single layer stainless is just extra security. Besides, he says, my 8 inch flue doesn't really have room for a double wall. As to it burning too hot, I can always do less logs at a time and when its really cold, I'll be all set!
Dug8498
Feeling the Heat
My apologies if this was answered somewhere already in this thread. I also tried googling this but am only finding results for loading
Can someone kindly explain to me what “loafing” is?
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More details on the flue lining. I'm getting an Olympia Forever Flex 316Ti stainless steel flexible liner inside my existing 8" terra-cotta liner which itself is in fine shape. I'm not clear on whether there is any insulation involved but It isn't double-walled. Seems like I'd be ok with the terra cotta but this is just some added peace of mind. Lifetime warranty if that means anything. Completely external brick and masonry chimney that doesn't touch any combustibles anywhere.
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Heh. I never thought about this before, but it seems to me that this kind of chimney could withstand a pretty rip-roaring chimney fire without threatening the house -- with the very large exception of the threat of sparks on the roof! Of course, I guess the chimney itself would then be a wreck, but it's just interesting to notice. I've got the makings of a big brick and mortar jet engine out there! May I never find out what that would be like for real!
I'm no expert and maybe the experts would chime in but I think the idea was that in the more moderate weather the stove would either have much less than usual wood burning in it or have the air supply clamped down so that it wouldn't really be burning as clean as it should be. This can lead to creosote up the chimney and blackened windows in the stove and more pollution in the air, etc. Not a technical term just "not working hard".
Forgive me if I'm boring y'all with the liner question. I'll add another tidbit. I just talked to the stove dealer (who also does the installs) and he said he didn't think the pre-insulated liners would fit in the existing terra cotta, but he could do a pour-in liner if I wanted to for an additional $400. He felt it was not necessary, though, as the Lopi people specify that the non-insulated liner is perfectly fine. and sell that for their stoves. He's fine either way but is trying not to waste my money, which I appreciate. Given that the terra cotta is good, the Forever Flex provides a "belt and suspenders" level of safety. I guess adding the pour-in insulation would be belt, suspenders and duct tape level... We discussed the impact on draft and he felt the metal liner will make it a bit better than the terra cotta was and probably be more than adequate for the stove.
This has been discussed many times in many threads this year. The reason for the insulation is code compliance for safety reasons first. If the chimney has 1" gap from the house then it is ok without insulation. It's ok for trim to touch the chimney. What is the ID of the tile liner in the chimney? 8x8, 8x12?
Woody Stover
Minister of Fire
Right, you don't want to find out after the fact that your burnt house won't be covered by your insurance because the stove/chimney wasn't installed to code.
The chimney cap looks rectangular..8x12?
Tried to get in there via the cleanout to measure the inner diameter but failed. Definitely rectangular. Could be 8x12 I guess. I’ll know for sure when the installer comes out to have a look see. I’ll ask about code. He didn’t seem to be at all concerned about that. Are you sure the code says insulated? I mean there is brick and cinderblock thick around all sides.
Woody Stover
Minister of Fire
You need 1" clearance to combustibles for outside chimney, except trim as begreen said.
Many installers don't think past payday on these jobs. If your house becomes the center of a neighborhood weenie-roast party, it's no skin off their arse. Most probably don't have a thorough understanding of code.
Many installers don't think past payday on these jobs. If your house becomes the center of a neighborhood weenie-roast party, it's no skin off their arse. Most probably don't have a thorough understanding of code.
Vigil Igne
Member
I'll chime in even though I'm a bit late here and the original poster has stated he might be looking at a different stove. I do this for others that maybe searched on the question and are looking for responses about the Explorer III.
I'm sitting right next to mine now in my northern Wisconsin cabin where it's been below zero the last few nights.
I bought the Explorer III for the following main reasons (not in any specific order/ranking); design, large glass view, emergency heat back-up, simple design, no CAT (others might use and didn't want it ruined by someone not familiar with its correct operation).
I was very concerned that it was on the “slightly” larger end of what I needed. I have 1,080 sqft. on 1st floor and 580 sqft.on 2nd floor. In the shoulder seasons it burns too hot and I need to open a window on occasion. Fresh air is good and I can live with it.
Four days back my boiler for my radiant floors went out. I actually live 4.5 hours south of this cabin and I could see on my app (from home) that the temperature was dropping inside the cabin. Obviously, I was concerned that freezing would cause expensive damage! I was able to get to the cabin a couple days later where the inside ambient temperature was 40 degrees. When I arrived, I went right to the stove to light a fire before even checking the boiler. After that, I went and checked the boiler and discovered the fix was going to be something more than I would be able to diagnose. Spent the whole night on the couch keeping that fire going! By morning I was only able to get the heat to 62 degrees. I had pre-called for my HVAC guy to come out and he eventually had to replace a pump inside the boiler.
Here’s where I admit that the “emergency back-up heat” reason for getting the III was not big on my list. I am SO GLAD I went slightly oversize now! If I ever need another stove, I will rank the importance of “emergency back-up heat” as the top of my list and go “slightly oversize.”
I'm sitting right next to mine now in my northern Wisconsin cabin where it's been below zero the last few nights.
I bought the Explorer III for the following main reasons (not in any specific order/ranking); design, large glass view, emergency heat back-up, simple design, no CAT (others might use and didn't want it ruined by someone not familiar with its correct operation).
I was very concerned that it was on the “slightly” larger end of what I needed. I have 1,080 sqft. on 1st floor and 580 sqft.on 2nd floor. In the shoulder seasons it burns too hot and I need to open a window on occasion. Fresh air is good and I can live with it.
Four days back my boiler for my radiant floors went out. I actually live 4.5 hours south of this cabin and I could see on my app (from home) that the temperature was dropping inside the cabin. Obviously, I was concerned that freezing would cause expensive damage! I was able to get to the cabin a couple days later where the inside ambient temperature was 40 degrees. When I arrived, I went right to the stove to light a fire before even checking the boiler. After that, I went and checked the boiler and discovered the fix was going to be something more than I would be able to diagnose. Spent the whole night on the couch keeping that fire going! By morning I was only able to get the heat to 62 degrees. I had pre-called for my HVAC guy to come out and he eventually had to replace a pump inside the boiler.
Here’s where I admit that the “emergency back-up heat” reason for getting the III was not big on my list. I am SO GLAD I went slightly oversize now! If I ever need another stove, I will rank the importance of “emergency back-up heat” as the top of my list and go “slightly oversize.”
Wont happen. He is paying professionals to install. Insurance will pay him, then sue the "professionals".
Wrong. They would be sued into destitution by his insurance should a fire result.
I didn't mean to imply my guy did not care about code, I'm sure he does.
I'm not understanding the 1 inch to combustibles thing though. From my stove the pipe goes through brick and masonry into what is essentially a giant stack of non-combustible brick, mortar, terra cotta and cinderblock that is my chimney. There's not a combustile within six inches to a foot of the flue, I don't think, even thinking about the exterior bedroom wall above. Maybe you mean a one inch air gap between the whole chimney and the outer wall of the house even though the chimney itself is so thick? I'll certainly insist that they installer follows code, but I expect that is his intention.
Woody Stover
Minister of Fire
Maybe insurance would pay but I would rather have it installed to code in the first place and not have to deal with a burnt house. The OP clarified it above, because it sounded like the installer wasn't too concerned about code. If he was blowing off the necessity for a liner, I'd be wary.
Right, from the outside of the block.
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