I recently bought a new home and lugged my wood stove with me when I moved. I was hoping to pipe it through my first floor fireplace but my fireplace opening is not tall enough. Can I remove a layer or two of bricks without compromising the structure or possibly bore into the fireplace above the mantle? Any help would be appreciated... I'm a do-it-yourself guy and quite frankly can't afford to hire a mason. Thanks again.
Stove too large
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Prob'ly can't just "remove a layer or two of bricks", because more than likely there's a steel lintel across the bottom of the first course of brick above the fireplace opening that's a structural support for everything above it. Besides, there's chimney structure behind those bricks, so even if you blasted them out of your way, the stove still wouldn't just slide on in there. Yes, you can penetrate the existing masonry structure up somewhere on the wall to install a thimble through which to pass your wood stove piping into the existing chimney flue. That begs a number of further questions. You may well find that it will be necessary to extend the exisiting hearth in front of the fireplace opening to accomodate the stove and the required clearance to combustibles in front of the stove. More information and some pics of the stove and the intended installation location would help a lot. Welcome to the Forum! Rick
oh boy, you know how to make it hard on your self. You can cut the brick out with a abrasive saw. That might be better than beating it to pieces with a hammer. I think your gonna need a mettal frame to go in the new big opening made to support what is left though. Can you wield one up? If you can do that then you can mud it in yourself.
Old brick work is hard to tell with out looking it over. Then you got to think that stuff has been hot over the years. Hot and cooled, hot and cooled, It might have some cracks in there you cant see.
A a 6 inch hole bore saw above the mantel would be a lot easier on the structure and make the block off plate simple. You shoud be able to rent one but you got to figure how you gonna keep it way up there while making the cut. those hole bore are too heavy to hold up there by hand. You don't want to hang onto it anyway. if that bad boy hangs up it will roll you up with it. They are strong.
If it is a free standing stove you got it might be best to just stab in a roof support kit some where else in the house and leave the old fire place be.
Old brick work is hard to tell with out looking it over. Then you got to think that stuff has been hot over the years. Hot and cooled, hot and cooled, It might have some cracks in there you cant see.
A a 6 inch hole bore saw above the mantel would be a lot easier on the structure and make the block off plate simple. You shoud be able to rent one but you got to figure how you gonna keep it way up there while making the cut. those hole bore are too heavy to hold up there by hand. You don't want to hang onto it anyway. if that bad boy hangs up it will roll you up with it. They are strong.
If it is a free standing stove you got it might be best to just stab in a roof support kit some where else in the house and leave the old fire place be.
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How about taking the legs off the stove . You could get 4" legs for the DW . You could cut the legs and leave about 1 " air space under the stove . If you look under the brick you could see how hi up the smoke chamber starts . You mite have some room to remove the brick. You know the out let from the stove flips around and gos out the back.
If you look closely at the way your fireplace is constructed, what you'll find is a steel "shelf" supporting the first course of brickwork at the top of the fireplace opening. This is a lintel. It's a piece of angle iron probably 3 1/2" x 2 1/2" x 3/16", or so, embedded into the mortar joints on both sides. This is a critical structural member (think "header"). Trying to increase the height of the fireplace opening would be a major undertaking, if it's even feasible at all. Forget about it.
If you're hell-bent on installing that stove in that location, then it's gonna be a hearth stove sitting in front of the existing fireplace. This will require extension of the hearth, and possibly removal or shielding of the wood mantle. How you exhaust the stove is something that needs to be determined. By far the simplest would be to rear-exit and go up the existing chimney, if it'll fit (1 90 elbow). Next best would be to top exit and go straight up through the house to daylight, not using any portion of the existing chimney (no 90 elbows). My last choice would be to top exit and go vertically a ways and then penetrate the chimney structure (2 90 elbows).
Those are my strictly amateur thoughts on first glance. Rick
If you're hell-bent on installing that stove in that location, then it's gonna be a hearth stove sitting in front of the existing fireplace. This will require extension of the hearth, and possibly removal or shielding of the wood mantle. How you exhaust the stove is something that needs to be determined. By far the simplest would be to rear-exit and go up the existing chimney, if it'll fit (1 90 elbow). Next best would be to top exit and go straight up through the house to daylight, not using any portion of the existing chimney (no 90 elbows). My last choice would be to top exit and go vertically a ways and then penetrate the chimney structure (2 90 elbows).
Those are my strictly amateur thoughts on first glance. Rick
I agree with Rick (for a change). A nice hearth pad on top of the existing hearth shimmed level, a liner in that chinmey with a rear exit should work fine. Do not remove any bricks
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Thanks for all the help guys. I have decided that the best option with the way my house is set up is to enter the chimney above the mantle. I'm clear on the clearence issues and passing through the wall. What do you think the best way to drill a 6" hole is? Is there anything else about drilling the hole that I should know before I get started? Thanks again... -Paul.
Do you know what's behind that drywall?...is it just brick or is there a block-off plate assembly back there?. Any steel?. If it's just brick i'd layout a 6" dia circle and plow a bunch of holes in it with a hammer drill and knock it out.
Curious..what kind of stove is that?
Curious..what kind of stove is that?
Another option is to reverse the flue collar which is easy on a Dutchwest. It would mean a horizontal exit vs. a vertical, but it would reduce the effective height several inches, maybe even enough to avoid the alternatives mentioned on this thread.
Another nice feature of the DW w/ the bottom heat shield is the small floor clearance required. I have the 2479 (large DW non cat) and my cat sleeps under the stove w/o ever singing his fur. You can put your hand under the plate w/ ease. If you got the lower legs (or took the adjustment feet off entirely), that would also give you a little extra wiggle room.
Another nice feature of the DW w/ the bottom heat shield is the small floor clearance required. I have the 2479 (large DW non cat) and my cat sleeps under the stove w/o ever singing his fur. You can put your hand under the plate w/ ease. If you got the lower legs (or took the adjustment feet off entirely), that would also give you a little extra wiggle room.
Yup...you don't drill a 6" hole through a masonry chimney structure (at least unless you have some pretty expensive water-cooled/lubricated equipment)...you drill about a bazillion little holes and then you get your hammer and chisels and go after it until you got it the way you want it. Make darned sure you know just where that flue goes before you start drilling, some of them take a sideways jog on the way up. You want to end up dead center in the actual vertical flue. Rick
Used prices should be high when the weather cools, why not sell it for a good price and buy one that fits? Apples and oranges but I just ripped out a tile bathroom and tub and it was a lot of dusty work.
good luck
good luck
Chettt said:
To buy one that fits that opening you'd have a pretty small fire box....when you got a fat ole' porker there in your possesion that'd be a tough transaction. Keep the nice big ole stove, hammer drill to your hearts content and get er' done i say.
Not looking to get rid of the stove... it's a beast and I know its been taken care of... thanks for the advice... I'll let you know how it turns out.
-Paul
-Paul
Shorter legs, no legs, or reversing the exit flue all seem like much more sane options than drilling, hammering, blastng away parts of your home. Plus- that way you can say that you ignored Rick's advice. (mornin' Rick) 
Yep, knock the legs off. Pipe it out the back, extend the hearth and line the chimney.
And for some of you (and you know who you are), its not Rick's fault......he's retired Navy for cripes sake, that says it all. :coolsmirk:
I got your back shipmate....or is it "with friends like this....."
And for some of you (and you know who you are), its not Rick's fault......he's retired Navy for cripes sake, that says it all. :coolsmirk:
I got your back shipmate....or is it "with friends like this....."
I believe that stove has a short leg option. It may be enough to drop the over all stove height so that a rear exit flue could be piped into the existing chimney.
If that doesn't work, then Rick is spot on with the thimble into the existing run.
If that doesn't work, then Rick is spot on with the thimble into the existing run.
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