Surround Bolts or Screws

[Jersey Joe]

I bought an old Alaskan Kodiak that came with a surround but no way to attach it to the stove. I thought I could use hex head sheetrock screws but I can't find any big enough to work. Any suggestions?

TIA!

--JJ

 

[Gooserider]

What were you plannning on attaching the surround TO?? As a general rule, you really don't want to be attaching to the stove unless there is a specific designed attachment point, and ESPECIALLY you don't want to be doing anythng that would involve putting holes into the firebox.

My understanding is that the surround generally attaches to the fireplace and just "floats" around the stove.

Gooserider

 

[wg_bent]

My surround attaches to the stove, not the fireplace

 

[begreen]

If the stove was designed to be an insert, there is usually a flange on the body of the stove to which the surround attaches. Perhaps the surround was not made by Kodiak? If it's custom, I'm guessing it was somehow held in place other than attaching to the stove.

What about running it without the surround? You'll get more heat returned into the living space that way.

 

[Jersey Joe]

It's definately made for the stove as the holes match the flange holes around the stove. I thought I need the surround to make it airtight so to speak? I have insulation between it and the fireplace to seal it up(I have three screws that hold the surround on but they do not fit properly).

 

[begreen]

Now I'm confused. The original post said that it "came with a surround but no way to attach it to the stove." The flange is the way it attaches to the stove. It sounds like you need better sized screws? Can you post a picture of the problem?

As to sealing it up, the place you want to have it sealed is at the block off plate. The surround is mostly cosmetic.

 

[jtp10181]

Some MFG install manuals say to seal it at the surround with the panel full of insulation. I belive it is also written this way in the code book. Not saying its a good way of sealing it, just saying its legit if a full reline is done.

 

[Jersey Joe]

YES... I need larger screws/bolts. These were the largest I could find at Lowes/HD:

(broken link removed to http://i163.photobucket.com/albums/t313/GabeLogan86/P1030271.jpg)

Not sure if you can see by the photo but the screws are not in there properly. The only way they grabbed at all is because the flange and the surround are not lined up perfectly thus creating a smaller hole. I used the word "thus" ... what a tool

I do not have it sealed anywhere but the surround. The person who inspected my chimney said to just pack it around the surround with 4" strips of insulation...which I did.

 

[Gooserider]

YES... I need larger screws/bolts. These were the largest I could find at Lowes/HD:

(broken link removed to http://i163.photobucket.com/albums/t313/GabeLogan86/P1030271.jpg)

Not sure if you can see by the photo but the screws are not in there properly. The only way they grabbed at all is because the flange and the surround are not lined up perfectly thus creating a smaller hole. I used the word "thus" ... what a tool

I do not have it sealed anywhere but the surround. The person who inspected my chimney said to just pack it around the surround with 4" strips of insulation...which I did.

Not being able to see the flange, it's a bit hard to tell for sure, but what you might need is some sort of "Tinnerman" or clip on nut that will go over the flange to give you a set of "threads" that has some float to it. There are two styles that I've seen - one looks like a regular nut with a clip fastened to one side, that takes a "machine screw" fastener of the right size, the other is a folded strip of spring steel with appropriately sized holes in it it take a particular size of sheet metal screw. I suspect the second type would work better for you.

As to the blockoff, and sealing the front of the insert, you should do a search for "Blockoff Plates" which will get you a large number of threads on the subject, along with a couple of Wiki articles. There is some debate on the subject, but it appears that the "seal the faceplate to the fireplace" approach is definitely a less than ideal approach. The way it really should be done is to place a blockoff plate at the bottom of the chimney, just above where your connector goes into the liner, or where the liner goes through the damper opening. This both satisifies the code requirement on preventing room air from entering the chimney, and keeping heat from escaping up the chimney instead of gettting out into the room.

A blockoff plate can be a PITA to install, but is definitely compliant with all codes, and will definitely accomplish the goal of sealing the flue area. It is less clear whether attempting to seal at the surround is compliant at all, and it is generally less effective.

Gooserider

 

[jtp10181]

YES... I need larger screws/bolts. These were the largest I could find at Lowes/HD:

(broken link removed to http://i163.photobucket.com/albums/t313/GabeLogan86/P1030271.jpg)

Not sure if you can see by the photo but the screws are not in there properly. The only way they grabbed at all is because the flange and the surround are not lined up perfectly thus creating a smaller hole. I used the word "thus" ... what a tool

I do not have it sealed anywhere but the surround. The person who inspected my chimney said to just pack it around the surround with 4" strips of insulation...which I did.

Go to a real hardware store like Ace / True Value / Hardware Hank / etc... and you can probably find something that would work. Whenever I cant find a screw or bolt at Home Depot I go down the street to True Value and one of the guys there usually finds it for me, better service and better selection for hand tools and screws / bolts.

 

[theheatelement]

This is the way to go.... although they are not as cheap as HD or Lowes... they will take care of you.. Take the remaining screw to them and have them order you the correct size.. custom shops or smaller hardware stores will always take care of you.

YES... I need larger screws/bolts. These were the largest I could find at Lowes/HD:

(broken link removed to http://i163.photobucket.com/albums/t313/GabeLogan86/P1030271.jpg)

Not sure if you can see by the photo but the screws are not in there properly. The only way they grabbed at all is because the flange and the surround are not lined up perfectly thus creating a smaller hole. I used the word "thus" ... what a tool

I do not have it sealed anywhere but the surround. The person who inspected my chimney said to just pack it around the surround with 4" strips of insulation...which I did.

Go to a real hardware store like Ace / True Value / Hardware Hank / etc... and you can probably find something that would work. Whenever I cant find a screw or bolt at Home Depot I go down the street to True Value and one of the guys there usually finds it for me, better service and better selection for hand tools and screws / bolts.