Temperature above insert

[Miggss]

Been running my 2020 Pacific Energy t5 wood insert since December 1st. I'm very happy with the stove and really dont have any complaints. I do have one concern though and was looking for some input from some of you.

A little background first...

The fireplace is a full masonry chimney installed on an exterior wall. About 2 years ago we refaced our brick fireplace with a natural thin stone veneer, attached directly to the brick. The stone is granite. At that time we removed the stone mantel and I built a wood one. At that time the fireplace had never been used for a fire and we had no plans to use it or add a stove due to the house having an old wood furnace in the basement. Well we retired that unit and decided to go with the wood stove insert for a few different reasons. When I built the mantel I lowered the height of it by about 3 or 4 inches.

The bottom of the mantel is 23 inches above the top of the insert. The height from the top facing is 18.25 inches above the insert. The mantel sticks out 5.5 inches from the front of the stone hanging over the stove top. The clearance to combustibles above the stove top is listed as 12 inches for the t5, so I am within spec there. My concern is that once the stove has been up and running for while, I feel like the stone above the insert is getting pretty hot. I'm getting temperatures with my IR thermometer anywhere from 155 to 175. These temps are taken during the hottest part of the fire and cool as the fire slows down. I have no issues with any paint discoloration or anything like that on the painted mantel. Are these temperatures anything to worry about? I will attach a few pictures of my setup.

Also, because of the stone veneer not being a perfectly flat my face, my shroud has about a 3/4" space behind it directly above the stove top. Could that be funneling the hot air up the face of the stone? My fireplace firebox is almost the exact height of the insert shroud, so theres not really stone behind the shroud. Actually there is one spot where the stone is higher than the shroud by maybe about half an inch.

Thanks for any input.

 

[spudman99]

What you have is common on all insert shrouds. If you are concerned you can stuff small pieces of roxul in the gaps and that will stop or slow down the heat slippage. If you are inclined, when cool, if you take off the shroud and then use a piece of roxul 1" high and maybe 2" deep just like weatherstripping in the shroud. Put is back creating a seal but behind the panel and not visible. I did that and my mantle now rarely gets above 85 or 90 deg.

 

[Miggss]

What you have is common on all insert shrouds. If you are concerned you can stuff small pieces of roxul in the gaps and that will stop or slow down the heat slippage. If you are inclined, when cool, if you take off the shroud and then use a piece of roxul 1" high and maybe 2" deep just like weatherstripping in the shroud. Put is back creating a seal but behind the panel and not visible. I did that and my mantle now rarely gets above 85 or 90 deg.

Thanks for the response. That's kind of what I was thinking. I was thinking about maybe even wrapping it back under the bottom of the stone a few inches towards the lintel but wasnt quite sure how I would attach it to hold it in place. Tapcons and big washers or is there a better way?

 

[Amin1992]

I was wondering the same about mine, glad to know it's normal. Just out of curiosity, is your shroud/trim kind of loose? if I bang it it moves and rattles a bit

 

[spudman99]

Thanks for the response. That's kind of what I was thinking. I was thinking about maybe even wrapping it back under the bottom of the stone a few inches towards the lintel but wasnt quite sure how I would attach it to hold it in place. Tapcons and big washers or is there a better way?

You can be creative here. Depending on your skill level, you could make a shelf below the lintel out of a steel strip (3" or 4" wide with angle brackets on the side to support), fashion some sort of cradle out of chicken wire, etc. I haven't checked recently, but I think the top of the insert temperature behind the shroud is not that high. If so you could just rest a strip of roxul right on top measured to fit tightly below the lintel. Below is a picture of how I did the insulation. Can barely see the roxul between the brick and my homemade heat shield, and from a distance of 3' is it almost unnoticeable.

 

[Miggss]

You can be creative here. Depending on your skill level, you could make a shelf below the lintel out of a steel strip (3" or 4" wide with angle brackets on the side to support), fashion some sort of cradle out of chicken wire, etc. I haven't checked recently, but I think the top of the insert temperature behind the shroud is not that high. If so you could just rest a strip of roxul right on top measured to fit tightly below the lintel. Below is a picture of how I did the insulation. Can barely see the roxul between the brick and my homemade heat shield, and from a distance of 3' is it almost unnoticeable.
View attachment 255909

That's exactly what I'm looking to do and think it will help a ton. I'm probably fine without but know I would feel much better having it there. I wont be able to just kind of stuff it back there because the top of the shroud is very close to the top of the firebox and it wont stay. I like the shelf idea to hold it. I picked up some roxul and will see what I can come up with next week. We are supposed to have a few days in the mid 50s so I will pull the shroud off and see what I can do.