The cheap(er) hearthgate

[sullystull]

I've priced hearthgates to surround my wood stove. New on amazon, they run around $180. Used on Craigslist--$125. My 15 month old already walks by the wood stove and says hot--so I think she is figuring it out. However, she only has one speed--full on. I am worried she is going to take a digger one day while running past the stove and fall right into it. Therefore, a hearth gate is a must in this house.

Anyway, I went to HD and found these sections of railing--in 4 and 6 ft sections. Which is the same size as my hearth. I paid $50 total for three sections. I drilled holes top and bottom where they overlapped in the corners and bolted them together. We'll see how it works.

 

[Slow1]

Looks quite nice - how about a close up of the corner(s)? I'm curious to see how the joins worked out there.

Also - did you attach it to the hearth pad and/or wall in some way or is just sitting there?

Always looking for ways to save a few $'s and improve on things...

 

[Jfk4th]

Looks nice too, just concerned about the corners facing us in the pic, could a little guy or girl squeeze through that? I am one of those guys that not only bought one but two hearth gates for 180 a pop. I have one for my wood stove and another for my gas freestanding stove. It was a hefty price, but I love the small door/gate feature on mine that opens and locks really well, saving me from banging my ankle or foot when I used to climb over the gate to load wood.

But you saved a nice amount of cash and it looks pretty slick Bravo!

 

[sullystull]

Looks quite nice - how about a close up of the corner(s)? I'm curious to see how the joins worked out there.

Also - did you attach it to the hearth pad and/or wall in some way or is just sitting there?

Always looking for ways to save a few $'s and improve on things...

Here's a pic of the corners up close...pretty basic. I overlapped them in the front--which means the 4ft side sections are raised up (1")in the front resting on the 6ft front section. But the back's of the side sections are resting on the hearth. I bought some clamps to attach the side-rear to the wood hearth trim but haven't installed them. Doing that would keep the whole thing from tilting forward. However, once I put it together, the weight of itself pretty much keeps it from tipping. It wasn't designed as a jungle gym and certainly isn't 100% baby proof, but that wasn't my goal. And yes, she could probably climb through the openings at each corner. But again, the goal was simply to keep her from taking a digger face first into the stove.

Another design I saw in a bike magizine--a guy zip tied old bicycle rims together (vertically) and wrapped them around his stove. I needed something a little more "beefy".

 

[sullystull]

Looks quite nice - how about a close up of the corner(s)? I'm curious to see how the joins worked out there.

Also - did you attach it to the hearth pad and/or wall in some way or is just sitting there?

Always looking for ways to save a few $'s and improve on things...

Here's a pic of the corners up close...pretty basic. I overlapped them in the front--which means the 4ft side sections are raised up (1")in the front resting on the 6ft front section. But the back's of the side sections are resting on the hearth. I bought some clamps to attach the side-rear to the wood hearth trim but haven't installed them. Doing that would keep the whole thing from tilting forward. However, once I put it together, the weight of itself pretty much keeps it from tipping. It wasn't designed as a jungle gym and certainly isn't 100% baby proof, but that wasn't my goal. And yes, she could probably climb through the openings at each corner. But again, the goal was simply to keep her from taking a digger face first into the stove.

Another design I saw in a bike magazine--a guy zip tied old bicycle rims together (vertically) and wrapped them around his stove. I needed something a little more "beefy".