Oh how I need your guidance on this wood burning stove install.... Scan 60.

[sl7vk]

Ok, I'm going to give you the information I have, I'll throw in a photo for guidance, and then I need you all to hold my hand and guide me the right direction.

I have a very ineffecient masonry fireplace that I'm looking to replace. At first I looked at inserts, but have since decided to go with a stove (the Scan 60 (broken link removed)). I'm going to be ripping out the tile work around the fireplace and building a new heat shield... I guess you call it... myself. I'd like to put the stove on soapstone tile, and have it vent through the back, and then up the existing masonry chimney. Once the stove is installed, I'd then frame in the existing fireplace opening (with steel studs) and put up some durarock, and then build a stone tiled wall behind the stove.

First, is this something that is common? That is to say, running a woodburning stove back up the chimny flue and boxing in the existing opening?
Second, the guy that gave me the estimate gave me two options, running either stove pipe, or a stainless steel liner back up the chimney to connect everything. The liner is a bit cheaper, but I'm not sure if it's a good option (he didn't have any double or triple wall pipe, but he said that he'd get me a price on that (the run up the flue is a real straight shot). Is this the right way to do things?

He also mentioned that I could run normal Stove pipe through the opening (between the stove and the newly enclosed fireplace), assuming that I use non combustable materials to seal up the fireplace opening.... Is this right? My walls are built out of cinderblocks, with a brick veneer on top of that, so I'm not too worried about the walls going up.....

Now, I'm pretty handy, and the prices he gave me seemed a bit high, but hey, not having to do all this is certainly worth something to me.

Labor- $425
Stainless liner kit- $599 or
Single wall stove pipe $257

My fireplace run is 18 feet from top to bottom.

One last word, there is no way I can convince my wife to vent vertically through our main room. The look isn't going to work for her. So out the back it is.

Thanks for the advice in advance guys, and I look forward to your thoughts.

(broken image removed)

 

[fossil]

Is the mantle wood? Is it staying or going? Rick

 

[sl7vk]

Mantle is wood, that my predesecor covered with some type of aweful fireproof paint......

Long story short, it's being ripped out. I'm also going to remove the step, so that the stove can sit at floor's height.

 

[fossil]

I put both my stoves up on raised hearths...about 12" above floor level...because I'm too old to be bending over all the time. But then, both my stoves have straight-up stovepipes in the room, so I didn't have to be concerned about matching the stove height to a fireplace opening height. When you rip out that hearth down to the floor, you're going to have be concerned about what surface you build there to mount the stove atop...there are some very important safety considerations that must be observed as far as insulating quality and clearance to combustibles. The stove manufacturer's literature should spell it out in detail. Rick

 

[sl7vk]

Install guide says the following on the floor protection, so I'm not too worried....

NOTE: the floor protection need's only to be a standard ember protection.

 

[fossil]

Well, I guess you're go for throttle up on the floor then. Be generous with the extension out in front of the stove to protect that hardwood flooring. Is the masonry chimney a structure that's mostly exterior to the house? The concern there is temperature in the exhaust flue from the woodstove. The faster those gases cool, the more likely you are to have condensation and creosote buildup in the stovepipe/chimney. One way to minimize that problem is by the use of double walled, insulated liner up through that chimney. There are experts on all this here who I hope will chime in...I'm a relative rookie at all this, with limited experience. Rick

 

[begreen]

I don't see any issues with venting out the back and connected to a stainless liner. That is done a lot, but not with normal stovepipe. The installer should include a proper cap on top and a block off plate to seal the damper. Is this an external or interior chimney? If exterior, I would also consider having the liner insulated if there is room in the flue.

The prices quoted seem fair to me. If the dealer/installer is a good one, this is a not a bad deal.

 

[sl7vk]

I don't see any issues with venting out the back and connected to a stainless liner. That is done a lot, but not with normal stovepipe. The installer should include a proper cap on top and a block off plate to seal the damper. Is this an external or interior chimney? If exterior, I would also consider having the liner insulated if there is room in the flue.

The prices quoted seem fair to me. If the dealer/installer is a good one, this is a not a bad deal.

Chimney is external. The flue is roomy.... I would say 10 x 10 or so....

What kind of insulation is used for this type of application and is that something that I can do myself?

 

[BrotherBart]

Like BeGreen says, nix on plain old stove pipe in that chimney. Do the stainless liner kit all the way up and a damper frame block off plate at the bottom to keep the heat in the house. In SLC I wouldn't worry about insulating the liner with your temp ranges there. Left to his own devices BeGreen would have every exterior masonry chimney in North America demolished. 8-/ But some of us have them and they work fine with a liner in them.

When designing the installation and the liner setup always be thinking about installing it for the optimal way to clean the chimney. Too many people get the stove of their dreams installed and then show up here asking "How the heck can I clean this darn chimney now?".

 

[sl7vk]

Like BeGreen says, nix on plain old stove pipe in that chimney. Do the stainless liner kit all the way up and a damper frame block off plate at the bottom to keep the heat in the house. In SLC I wouldn't worry about insulating the liner with your temp ranges there. Left to his own devices BeGreen would have every exterior masonry chimney in North America demolished. 8-/ But some of us have them and they work fine with a liner in them.

When designing the installation and the liner setup always be thinking about installing it for the optimal way to clean the chimney. Too many people get the stove of their dreams installed and then show up here asking "How the heck can I clean this darn chimney now?".

Well that is a great point Brother Bart.

Using the stainless steel liner, I imaine that I would run that liner down to my fireplace opening, use a 90 Elbow, or a T that is capped at the end?!? and then use stove pipe or double walled stove pipe from the elbow to the stove? Is that how it will be done?

If so, would that type of setup present cleaning problems? I imagine that one could always sweep the chimney from above, and disconnect the stove and sweep from there to get the elbow?

 

[BrotherBart]

Preferably a tee if the stove is narrow enough to allow you to reach behind it and uncap the tee to clean from above and collect the crud in a bag over the tee at the bottom. Still left would be how you clean out the horizontal pipe from the tee to the stove.

 

[sl7vk]

Preferably a tee if the stove is narrow enough to allow you to reach behind it and uncap the tee to clean from above and collect the crud in a bag over the tee at the bottom. Still left would be how you clean out the horizontal pipe from the tee to the stove.

My problem with the T, is that it will be enclosed in the chimney, which I plan on blocking in with stone tile.

Perhaps a 90 degree elbow, and to clean the last portion, the stove would need to be removed for the cleaning....

 

[BrotherBart]

Lots of ways to do it. Just do the thinking before you install it.

Otherwise you have a choice of three words. S#@t, damn or whoops!

 

[begreen]

With 10-20 degree temps in winter I'll stick to my recommendation for insulating the liner, thank ye. Especially if the chimney tiles are not in first rate condition. But as BB says, that's me. I like clean flues and strong draft.

 

[sl7vk]

Would this be a job worth undertaking myself?

 

[Jags]

It looks like you have a pretty straight forward install. If you are the handy type, it would be doable. Keep in mind that many people do actually move their stoves for the cleaning process, but its a pain in the backside. If you can, design it so that is not needed. Maybe some sort of access to the newly tiled face of the original fire place to access the "T"? Dunno, just throwing ideas.

 

[begreen]

Yes, you could DIY. Many do and sometimes better than some pros because they can take their time and are not on the clock. I'd be thinking of making the panel behind the stove removable.

 

[sl7vk]

Ok, good stuff.

Is flexible or rigid the way to go on this application? It's a straight shoot down the flue, but I'm not sure if rigid would be much harder then these flexible applications.

I do most things myself not because of the price but because I have a very strong vested interest in the outcome.... As you mentioned.

 

[Jags]

If this were being installed in Jags house in Northern Illinois - it would be insulated and rigid if at all possible. That is just my preference. It is true, that you may not have a cooling/condensing issue with an uninsulated liner, but I see no advantage of heating the masonry work of an exterior chimney. Then again, I am not overly familiar with your winters.

 

[bartlett920]

that single wall stovepipe quote is ridiculous it better be gold plated for that price!

 

[fossil]

http://www.weather.com/outlook/trav...y/graph/USUT0225?from=36hr_bottomnav_business

 

[Jags]

http://www.weather.com/outlook/travel/businesstraveler/wxclimatology/monthly/graph/USUT0225?from=36hr_bottomnav_business

Now I am overly familiar with your winters. I'd insulate. (thanks fossil)

 

[BrotherBart]

Yep. Virtually a carbon copy of the graph for us.

 

[Jags]

Yep. Virtually a carbon copy of the graph for us.

The "compare" feature was really neat on that page.

 

[sl7vk]

Ok, so insulating it is....

Use some rigid and insulate it myself is the takeaway here? It'll probably cost me less then the quote, be done better (being that I'll put in a blocking plate, or whatever the hell it's called) and last longer....

So, where does one buy stainless steel insulated stovepipe.... and do I need 304 or the 316 kind?