Please help! New House has a fisher stove…no idea what I’m doing.

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Beverly3307

New Member
Sep 9, 2022
5
Maryland
I recently bought a house that has a fisher stove in the basement. The previous owner only lived at the house for a short period of time and never used it. I am having people professionally clean it, etc. but I have no idea how it works or what model it is.
(How does it heat the house? Is there a blower that blows out the air like a pellet stove?)

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You have a Grandma Bear I. Likely built around 1978 or 1979. It did not use a door gasket, but many have been fitted with them, unknowingly since most stoves use gasket material to seal doors.

This heats with radiant heat. That means the hot surface radiates in all directions heating walls, floors, people, and any mass near it. Most installations use vents through the floor along with open stairways to allow heat to rise through the rest of the building. There are right and wrong ways to do this. You have started in a good place.

Stoves with air chambers around them use air for convection. That’s what pellet stoves moving air with blowers do. A BTU is a BTU, no matter how it is extracted. This will heat over 1500 square feet in your area. Closer to 2000 or more depending on insulation and windows.

The main thing with any wood stove is using dry wood. Do you have a supply, or ever used wood? You will need a moisture meter to start, and a magnetic pipe thermometer if there is none on the stove pipe or stove top.

This older stove will heat a large area, not near as efficient as newer stoves, but also can burn sub-par wood where newer stoves need dryer premium wood. In the sticky section at top of the Fisher home page start with the Grandpa and Grandma Fireplafe Series details thread. This will give you the history of the stove and how they were invented back in 1976 as the first stoves capable of fire viewing with a spark screen. If you have the screen, let me know for directions on how to use it. The manual is also in the sticky section as pre UL Fireplace Series.
 
Thanks for the information! I have a lot to learn but I’m grateful
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the previous homeowners had it installed on a brick area they had built. Excited to get use out of it this winter.
 
Get the chimney cleaned and inspected before using it.
 
Yep! I am getting it cleaned..:had to get it inspected to buy the house.
You have a great heater and a great stove to learn on. Once you have a dry wood supply (reference Coaly), you may want to upgrade to something new--or not. Keep reading on this site and you will come to your own answers. If I had your stove in my house, it very well might likely stay where it is.
 
On the other hand, what is behind the brick? (drywall and studs?) It seems quite close to the wall. If this is brick in front of concrete (i.e. there are no combustibles close), it may be fine.

Do you have enough non-flammable area in front of the stove? I think that ought to be 16".

Bottomline: what are the clearances needed for this beast? I believe this is 3 ft for this stove. @coaly ?
 
On the other hand, what is behind the brick? (drywall and studs?) It seems quite close to the wall. If this is brick in front of concrete (i.e. there are no combustibles close), it may be fine.

Do you have enough non-flammable area in front of the stove? I think that ought to be 16".

Bottomline: what are the clearances needed for this beast? I believe this is 3 ft for this stove. @coaly ?
Yes, 36 inches to combustible material.

Assuming this is a basement cement wall behind the brick.

If combustible wall behind brick in contact with wall, 24 inch clearance.

Agreed, not enough floor protection in front, or remove flammable material if non-combustible floor under it.
 
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I’m almost positive it’s concrete behind the brick. And we had the basement redone so it looks different now. There is no carpet and we had new floors installed.
 
For open door use with screen in place, a flue damper is required, not sure if it shown in pic. It would be in the connector pipe between stove and chimney. The connector pipe looks huge in your picture, maybe it is double wall making the outside diameter 10 inches?

With a fire established, open doors and install spark screen. Slowly close flue damper until smoke starts to form and roll in at top. Open slightly. This is the setting that will allow smoke to evacuate while retaining as much heat as possible. They are not considered radiant heaters in Fireplace Mode.

Your burning experience will be determined by how dry your wood supply is while learning. You should have a moisture meter, freshly split a large piece and test the moisture content by sticking he probes into the fresh split face at room temperature. Wood should always be below 20% before burning. Above that moisture content you will have a slow burning fire, not heating well, forming creosote.

The next thing is learning the controls. If there is a flue damper in pipe, leave it open until you learn your stove. Open air damper intakes 2 or 3 full turns. This is the only time you will open them that far. Build fire with crunched up paper, cardboard, small sticks or small kindling splits. Light fire, close doors. You should hear a roar shortly of exhaust rushing up the stack. Slow it down by closing air dampers slowly. This should allow fire to burn and heat stove until you can put a few split logs on top. You may have to open air dampers to get it going hard enough to ignite logs. Normally a turn and a half open to 1 turn should be about right. As they catch, put more on and set air dampers for desired heat output, usually somewhere between 1 turn and cracked open.

All chimneys and pipe configurations are different, as well as atmospheric conditions, outside temperature, and other factors such as fuel being used that will affect your settings at any given time.

The main thing is learning what makes a stove work, then you know what to do and why it changes the performance.

First, the basics are as the hot exhaust gases rise up chimney, that creates a low pressure area or vacuum in chimney, pipe, and stove. This allows atmospheric air pressure to PUSH into anywhere it can, mainly the stove air intakes or open doors. So the temperature differential between inside the chimney and outdoor temp is one factor of how strong this vacuum will be. This is measured as draft. It is a very minute pressure change, less than your breath. Air rushing in is what makes it go. A tight home, exhaust fans running, even lots of warm air from the basement rising upstairs lowers the available air pressure in basement, slowing the stove. You will learn what you can and can’t do that affects the fire.

Did it come with any thermometer for stove top or pipe? The type of pipe, single wall or double wall determines the type of pipe thermometer you will need. That is like a speedometer on a car. Without it, you are guessing, just like not having a moisture meter for the correct fuel, and will either be wasting heat up the chimney, or not allowing enough to go up to prevent creosote. Those two items and dry wood are essential.
 
Thanks for the information! I have a lot to learn but I’m grateful View attachment 298879the previous homeowners had it installed on a brick area they had built. Excited to get use out of it this winter.
I just acquired a Grandpa Bear stove as well, and we will be building a stone hearth and surround, and I have chimney professionals on standby to insert the chimney when we are at that point. Would you be willing to measure the clearance behind and on the sides of the stove. We are in planning stages. I know the chimney pros are going to help us - but yours looks more tucked in than I would have thought for code.
 
I just acquired a Grandpa Bear stove as well, and we will be building a stone hearth and surround, and I have chimney professionals on standby to insert the chimney when we are at that point. Would you be willing to measure the clearance behind and on the sides of the stove. We are in planning stages. I know the chimney pros are going to help us - but yours looks more tucked in than I would have thought for code.
The required clearance is 36" to combustibles. That can be reduced to different levels by different types of shielding. How will the hearth and surround be built?
 
The required clearance is 36" to combustibles. That can be reduced to different levels by different types of shielding. How will the hearth and surround be built?
Corner install - cement board on floor under a raised flagstone hearth. Stone wall surround (spaced 1" away from wall adhered to the cement wall board. Double walled stove pipe/chimney straight up through attic and out rooftop.
 
Corner install - cement board on floor under a raised flagstone hearth. Stone wall surround (spaced 1" away from wall adhered to the cement wall board. Double walled stove pipe/chimney straight up through attic and out rooftop.
As long as you have a 1" air space top an bottom on the walls the stove can be down to 12". 6" on the pipe. You will need more insulation for the hearth as well I believe
 
As long as you have a 1" air space top an bottom on the walls the stove can be down to 12". 6" on the pipe. You will need more insulation for the hearth as well I believe
Thank you bholler - we are looking to the professional stove/chimney installer to provide us info on hearth - they are booked into 2023, but can fit in the chimney install if we build the rest. The legs on the stove are about 4" so the stove will not sit directly on the flagstones - and the masonry/flagstone hearth will be thicker than a pre-made fireproof hearth sold at the stove store. The chimney pipe will go straight up from the stove and won't be any nearer than 20"+ to a wall. The one inch bump out is what we need to study - so the air gap has to be open at the top (in other words no mantle?) and a gap at the bottom of the wall- open space between it and the hearth?? (I apologize as it seems install details have inadvertently hijacked this thread)
 
Thank you bholler - we are looking to the professional stove/chimney installer to provide us info on hearth - they are booked into 2023, but can fit in the chimney install if we build the rest. The legs on the stove are about 4" so the stove will not sit directly on the flagstones - and the masonry/flagstone hearth will be thicker than a pre-made fireproof hearth sold at the stove store. The chimney pipe will go straight up from the stove and won't be any nearer than 20"+ to a wall. The one inch bump out is what we need to study - so the air gap has to be open at the top (in other words no mantle?) and a gap at the bottom of the wall- open space between it and the hearth?? (I apologize as it seems install details have inadvertently hijacked this thread)
Yes, a approved heat shield to protect a combustible wall is setting the shield on 1 inch high spacers to elevate from bottom for air intake. Open at top.

Floor protection should be double 1/2 cement board under finished stone.

This assumes you have minimum 6 inch legs that was standard and is the minimum height required. Also if this is a Series III, the manual is in sticky section with approved clearances. That model has bottom and rear shields.
 
I just acquired a Grandpa Bear stove as well, and we will be building a stone hearth and surround, and I have chimney professionals on standby to insert the chimney when we are at that point. Would you be willing to measure the clearance behind and on the sides of the stove. We are in planning stages. I know the chimney pros are going to help us - but yours looks more tucked in than I would have thought for code.
The stove pictured appears to be in a basement with non-combustible walls behind brick. Clearances are for combustible walls.

If the walls shown were combustible framed walls with solid brick in contact with wall without airspace, a 33% reduction down to 24 inches is permitted.
 
The stove pictured appears to be in a basement with non-combustible walls behind brick. Clearances are for combustible walls.

If the walls shown were combustible framed walls with solid brick in contact with wall without airspace, a 33% reduction down to 24 inches is permitted.
The photo is at the previous owner's home. I should have mentioned that. We will be re-doing a corner of our living room which is typical drywall and plank flooring at this time. If we include the 1" air space between combustible drywall and cement board with the stone facing...have I learned correctly that there is a 66% reduction? (with double wall stove pipe/chimney?) Thank you Coaly
 
The photo is at the previous owner's home. I should have mentioned that. We will be re-doing a corner of our living room which is typical drywall and plank flooring at this time. If we include the 1" air space between combustible drywall and cement board with the stone facing...have I learned correctly that there is a 66% reduction? (with double wall stove pipe/chimney?) Thank you Coaly
Yes, after floor protection is done set spacers to support weight of shield so you have a 1 inch minimum opening across the bottom. This becomes the air intake for the hot air to rise behind shield carrying the heat away from wall. Open across top. Measuring to the combustible studs allows a 66% reduction down to a minimum of 12 inches.

The size of shield is determined by measuring 36 inches on any angle from stove surface. Since the stove radiates in straight lines from it in all directions, that maintains 36 inches to unprotected wall.

Single wall pipe requires 18 inches clearance to combustibles. Double wall can be reduced to 6. The same type shield with 1 inch air space also reduces single wall pipe clearance by 66% down to 6 inch minimum.
 
The photo is at the previous owner's home. I should have mentioned that. We will be re-doing a corner of our living room which is typical drywall and plank flooring at this time. If we include the 1" air space between combustible drywall and cement board with the stone facing...have I learned correctly that there is a 66% reduction? (with double wall stove pipe/chimney?) Thank you Coaly
You came to the right place to ask questions. There are pros and people that have a ton of experience on these forums. Saved me 2k and many headaches most likely.
 
After meeting with a local stove & chimney installation company, who was willing to guide us through the proper installation of the bicentennial Fisher Grandpa Bear stovethat I was so thrilled to purchase, I decided it would be smarter to sell my new/used Fisher and purchase a new smaller stove (likely a PE TN20) - which will not require a surround and only a hearth. Cost wise buying new without all the protective build-out for the Fisher is going to be a wash and I am going to have less headache with the insurance company. A bit sad, however, as I quickly fell in love with the history of the Fisher Stove Co. I loved that it is the bicentennial model. I can get a new UL listed stove installed with much less work, therefore hopefully in time for heat by Christmas.
 
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