Old wood stove... few basic questions...

[Hova]

I am going to stick a wood stove ( portable cast iron with 2 removable burner plates on top that vents out the top) in the back of a truck bed that has a fiberglass camper shell on it. I intend to cut a hole in the top of the campershell and vent straight up through it however I could use two 90 degrees turns and vent out the top of the truck cab however I believe that it won't vent/burn properly? Safety is my #1 concern, price is my 2nd and life span is 3rd. I would like to go the stove store and buy the top of the line, state of the art, recommended components however that is just not gonna happen. Need to make this work on as little money as possible without compromising safety. I am a decent handyman and also DIY kinda person, when its feasible.

1. Least inexpensive way to shield the fiberglass from melting where the exhaust pipe will go through the roof?

2. Least inexpensive exhaust pipe that I can use? For my application I believe I can get away with single wall. The old rusty pipe was a single wall (steel?) pipe about 3 feet long and 6 inches wide. The previous owner said they used it in a garage setting.

3. Why would galvanized vent pipe that you can buy at your local hardware store for $8 for 6 feet not work? I believe its the pipe used in A/C units or indoor stove hoods. Is it so thin that it would melt? If its not going to melt then why not?

4. I said "galvanized," which might sound some alarm bells in some of you. I was reading an article that the wood stoves don't burn hot enough for the gases to emit from the vent pipe, unlike welding it, which would. The article even showed a modern article for a popular wood stove that included a galvanized exhaust pipe.

5. If I can't use the vent pipe I mentioned earlier then what is the cheapest I can get away with and where might I expect to find it?

6. Is 6 inch exhaust standard or can I get away with 4 inch?

7. Any other advice is welcome!! Thank you.

 

[webbie]

There is nothing which meets any kind of code which is mentioned in your questions - people understandably are reluctant to give advice on stuff which is likely to injure you!

Back in the old days I installed stoves in bread vans, old school buses, tents and all other kinds of shelters...burned a tool shed down once doing it in the "single wall" way.

I can assure you that wood stoves will make the galvanized outgas - have seen it happen many a time! Not to say lots of stoves haven't been installed that way, but we don't have the cancer stats over that particular population.

If it were me I'd use stainless steel pipe - and use common sense for most of the rest of the stuff. At least that won't be attacked by the weather and flue gases to the same extent. You may be able to dig around for some second-hand insulated chimney and use that for safest and best results.

As far as stack size, it must be equiv. to the outlet on the stove

Hope that helps somewhat!

 

[bags]

I agree 100% with webbie. Look at alternative heat sources. Any small stove will turn he back of a truck with a camper into an oven I would think. What is your main objective here? What are you trying to do and / or heat and for what reasons? Galvanized and wood burning is a huge NO GO!