Steel Hearth / Stove Pad 4 Woodstove? I don't want ceramic tiles - can any one help?

[kolbyTheDog]

I am looking at buying a medium size Regency wood burning freestanding stove. I'm planning to install it at the end of my long kitchen / family room. The room has loose lay vinyl flooring (neat product that you can install your self, which I did, and does not glue down, and has a thin almost pad like material on the back - very comfy on your feet).

My flooring is a simulated tile pattern so I want to stay away from the typical ceramic hearth pad that you see at most dealers as I feel having real cermaic tile of a differnt color and pattern on top of a fake tile pattern will look bad.

I was at a store once where I saw a metal hearth pad that remided me of a big cookie baking sheet. Has anyone else seen these? Is there a place to buy one online? Are these for gas stoves and not higher heat wood stoves? Maybe I was just dreaming about cookies.... I can't find these on-line anywhere.

I was thinking about getting a sheet of diamod plate or shinny steel for a high tech look, but a stove dealer told me that might not be a high enough R value. Could I get a couple of sheets of Durarock, sandwich them together and then glue a sheet of diamod plate to that?

I think the other thing I might consider is marble tiles on dura rock... I have heard marble has a high R value.

Anyone have pictures they want to post of a alternate to the tradational ceramic hearth pad?

Thanks!

 

[JohnnyBravo]

those hearth pads have some sort of asbestos filling to get the required r value. my friend has one at his place. im sure you could use steel (its non-combustable) and just build up the needed r value under it. take into acount that the steel will conduct the heat very well to the outside of hearth it may have to be bigger. as far as alternate, i used a slab of 7/8 slate one piece just cut to size.

 

[eernest4]

Lazy larry just went to home depot & bought 18" x 10" x 1.5 in cement rectangles & placed them on the floor & put the stove on top. fast , easy & cheap. And they come in colors too:
white, red & green. About $29.oo

Maybe not so pretty,but they fine for the girls I date!

You could glue anything non combustable onto the cement rectangles to make it look fancy, like stainless steel sheel metal or aluminum,or just plain steel or something anodized in different colors.

 

[kolbyTheDog]

I found at my local Menards (like lowes and HD in Midwest) "Stove Boards" from HY-C that offer some insulation value. On the box it says if you need more R value, buy 2 or 3 and stack them on top of each other. Also, these boards can be used as wall shields - they sell some special mounting spacers that will hold these to the wall with the required one inch air gap.

http://www.hyccompany.com/index.html

Also, Morso makes glass and metal floor protectors. I called their US office and spoke with a British sounding guy and he said theirs are protectors only and do not offer any insulation value and should only be used with stoves that have heat shields on them or used on floors that don't require protection like concrete.

http://www.morsoe.com/us/Products/Accessories/Hearth_pads/Morsø+hearth+pads.htm

 

[stathouse]

A single concrete pad could look nice in your situation. You would have to do some research on how thick it would need to be for the proper R value. If you are handy, you can learn to do concrete yourself. You can tint it any color, then you sand and polish it. I have a concrete kitchen counter and I have a friend who built a hearth for a traditional fire place. Do a search on the internet; I just typed in "concrete hearth" or "concrete fireplace" to get some ideas.

Good luck.

kb

 

[Ashamatash]

I just purchased one of those for my new pellet stove. A 36" x 36" was $60. and you can order it through this company based out of CT. Be careful when you put the stove down as it will scuff or dent requiring a bit of touchup paint.

http://www.afterglowenergy.com/

Scott

 

[begreen]

Lazy larry just went to home depot & bought 18" x 10" x 1.5 in cement rectangles & placed them on the floor & put the stove on top. fast , easy & cheap. And they come in colors too:
white, red & green. About $29.oo

Maybe not so pretty,but they fine for the girls I date!

You could glue anything non combustable onto the cement rectangles to make it look fancy, like stainless steel sheel metal or aluminum,or just plain steel or something anodized in different colors.

A couple suggestions to the beer budget route. First, all stoves I have read up on require mortar or something between the block joints to assure that nothing can work it's way through a crack. This is easily taken care of with a sheet of steel sheet metal on top of the concrete. Second, put a frame around the blocks to stop them from shifting.