Probably not the first time this was asked . . . (clearances)

[WesTexGuy]

I have 9.5' ceilings and am going to build an hearth of about 16" high in a corner of our "great room" (almost 1000 sq. ft.) House is wood frame/pier and beam construction. After reading some on this site, I am thinking I might be wise to use cinder blocks for support and use the appropriate cement board(s) on top of this upon which well will lay stone or tile. That way no combustibles are near the bottom of my stove. Also, the instructions call for 36" clearance for sides and back of stove, but in a corner application, would you measure from the corner of the stove closest to the wall? If so, that puts my stove way out into my room. The wife wants rock (veneer) on the walls and I suppose I am going to need fir out for the ventilation as discussed on here. What would that bring my clearance down to if I did that and should I use the metal framing studs to build this wall and attach the CBU to it?

Thanks in advance for your help - I hate being a "newbie". Perhaps I'll be able to pass along some advice one of these days.
Regards from Texas.

 

[MrGriz]

Welcome WTG. Giving this a bump and asking a few questions.

What stove are you planning to install? The 36" clearance sounds like a generic guideline for an unlisted stove, but I'm not sure. There are many stoves out there that require much less clearance for a corner installation, you may want to check out some different options.

 

[tradergordo]

Yea, 36 seems high. You want to follow your owner's manual, it should be pretty specific. Most modern stoves send very little heat stright down, so there is no need to go overboard on your hearth pad - just meet the r-value that is required by code (which in almost all cases, is the r-value listed in your owner's manual. Same goes for the walls pretty much - you don't have to go nuts, but the stone veneer can look nice and can have some other advantages such as the absorption of and retention of heat much like a soapstone stove. The wall itself will radiate heat after the fire dies down.

 

[webbie]

An excessive hearth like that would usually only be needed with a stove that has very short legs.....

To repeat the other ???, what stove are you installing? There might be an easier way.