Why raise a hearth for a wood stove?

[Lumber-Jack]

I built a raised hearth in my shop because codes require it to be > 18" above the ground in garage applications (in case of fumes in the shop/garage). Even though the old insert I put in there has no legs or pedestal the stove door access is still higher and easier to manage than the stove I have in the house. High enough I use a little stool on wheels, where as I have to kneel, or sit on the ground to feed the house stove.

I like the looks of a raised hearth, and the easier access, and I am seriously considering building some sort of raised hearth platform in the house, and I'm wondering why I don't just built it high enough to easily feed the stove from a standing position rather than just high enough that I still need a stool or chair. With my existing stove in the house that would require about a 20" raised hearth.
I have a high ceiling in the stove room, so clearance to the ceiling wouldn't be an issue for me.

 

[Hogwildz]

I built a raised hearth in my shop because codes require it to be > 18" above the ground in garage applications (in case of fumes in the shop/garage). Even though the old insert I put in there has no legs or pedestal the stove door access is still higher and easier to manage than the stove I have in the house. High enough I use a little stool on wheels, where as I have to kneel, or sit on the ground to feed the house stove.

I like the looks of a raised hearth, and the easier access, and I am seriously considering building some sort of raised hearth platform in the house, and I'm wondering why I don't just built it high enough to easily feed the stove from a standing position rather than just high enough that I still need a stool or chair. With my existing stove in the house that would require about a 20" raised hearth.
I have a high ceiling in the stove room, so clearance to the ceiling wouldn't be an issue for me.

X1
Thinking af maybe 2' raised for the 30 in the addition when I install it. Will have to check ceiling to stove height. Luckily 10' ceiling, so I will go as high as legal.
Having a crappy back seals this decision for me. Hell I hurt it loading a box of copy paper in the truck today. Was pulling it out of the cart that got me.
Younger years of roofing, play & indestructibility is catching up with my daily it seems anymore.

 

[Lumber-Jack]

X1
Thinking af maybe 2' raised for the 30 in the addition when I install it. Will have to check ceiling to stove height. Luckily 10' ceiling, so I will go as high as legal.
Having a crappy back seals this decision for me. Hell I hurt it loading a box of copy paper in the truck today. Was pulling it out of the cart that got me.
Younger years of roofing, play & indestructibility is catching up with my daily it seems anymore.

Yep, same problem here, after years of abuse it's time I started treating my back with the respect it deserves.
I don't understand why the hearth community feels it's so necessary to bend over to load heavy chunks of wood into their stoves???
I've never been one to accept the status quo, and I know I'll probably be ostracized from the hearth community and this forum, but I don't care it will be worth it to be able to stand upright and load my stove without having to stoop down to the usual level of indignity I have subjected my back to all these years.
I've decided I'm going to build a pedestal for my wood stove that will allow me to stand up with pride (and no pain) while I'm loading or cleaning out the ashes.
Fortunately my stove room (and hearth) is due for a renovation anyway, so I should be able to incorporate some sort of raised hearth idea into the theme.
Hard to find many pictures on the net of elevated hearth ideas though.
Although I did manage to find one.

 

[Hogwildz]

X1
Thinking af maybe 2' raised for the 30 in the addition when I install it. Will have to check ceiling to stove height. Luckily 10' ceiling, so I will go as high as legal.
Having a crappy back seals this decision for me. Hell I hurt it loading a box of copy paper in the truck today. Was pulling it out of the cart that got me.
Younger years of roofing, play & indestructibility is catching up with my daily it seems anymore.

Yep, same problem here, after years of abuse it's time I started treating my back with the respect it deserves.
I don't understand why the hearth community feels it's so necessary to bend over to load heavy chunks of wood into their stoves???
I've never been one to accept the status quo, and I know I'll probably be ostracized from the hearth community and this forum, but I don't care it will be worth it to be able to stand upright and load my stove without having to stoop down to the usual level of indignity I have subjected my back to all these years.
I've decided I'm going to build a pedestal for my wood stove that will allow me to stand up with pride (and no pain) while I'm loading or cleaning out the ashes.
Fortunately my stove room (and hearth) is due for a renovation anyway, so I should be able to incorporate some sort of raised hearth idea into the theme.
Hard to find many pictures on the net of elevated hearth ideas though.
Although I did manage to find one.

Great pic!
That hearth looks like it needs a larger stove though LOL.
And that yellow paint....... hmmmm I am more of a natural wood kinds guy LMAO.
Very cool hearth though!

 

[Shari]

The only problem I see with the photo above is that stove manufactures also include a ceiling height clearance. As long your install agrees with mfg. specs there should be no inspection problems. In the photo above there is a cathedral ceiling so there is no problem.

 

[Hogwildz]

The only problem I see with the photo above is that stove manufactures also include a ceiling height clearance. As long your install agrees with mfg. specs there should be no inspection problems. In the photo above there is a cathedral ceiling so there is no problem.

Good point. But also see the cathedral ceiling is not directly over the stove. There might be an issue with the lower ceiling over the stove. Maybe do metal studs & durock or another non combustible over that area.

 

[SPhill]

Our hearth is raised 8" -- mostly for all the aesthetic reasons mentioned earlier -- and is topped in flat fieldstone.

One aspect of a raised hearth I gave some thought to is safety. Raised hearths are commonly edged in something very hard and unforgiving; like stone or brick. If an elderly person or toddler fell and hit the edge of the hearth, it could knock their teeth out.

I made padding for mine out of foam pipe insulation. I slit the insulation lengthwise and it fits over the sharp fieldstone corners all around the edge of the hearth (it's 4" beyond the non-combustible zone). I put it on when we have elderly or toddlers over. It's dark gray and doesn't even look that bad; most people don't notice.

Some years back a little kid did fall and hit the hearth. The padding saved him from any serious injury.

 

[begreen]

Carbon_Lib, nothing wrong with a raised hearth at all. I like the idea. It can be convenient and attractive. The design can be simple or massive depending on what fits the house and budget. A few years back a really nice solution was posted by jaquith for their F3CB on a raised hearth.

 

[Lumber-Jack]

Yeah, I'm not crazy about the tiny stove or room color scheme either, but it's one of the few pictures I could find of a wood stove that looks like it could be loaded without sitting or kneeling.

I've been pondering this for some time, weighing the possible pros and cons of raising the stove height, and what I'm thinking is to build the stove pedestal on top of my existing hearth pad, but just big enough for my stove to sit on. My existing hearth pad is slightly raised, so the raised pedestal would be something similar to the one I have in my shop but slightly higher. That way, by leaving the lower hearth , I still maintain proper code clearances to flammables around, and especially in front of the stove, but I can easily step up on the lower hearth pad and feed the stove without the having to reach over the raised portion.

I guess another option would be to simply manufacture a metal pedestal base like the one that came with my stove only taller, but I think it would be more appealing (and stable) to build a concrete pedestal like the one in my shop and finish it with whatever I decide to redo the lower portion of the hearth with. I've been thinking of redoing it with some sort of natural slate tiles.

This is what my existing stove looks like now, functional, but not very appealing. The room is about the last room in the whole house that hasn't had been remodeled since we moved in. In fact there is still a big hole in the wall directly behind the stove where an old electrical wall heater use to be.

 

[begreen]

I like the idea of an open cavity under the stove for wood storage. A metal stand might be more portable if you plan on doing a lot of work on this room and need to temporarily move it out of the way. It would be lighter too if the floor support is iffy.

 

[The Dude]

Thanks for continuing the discussion. I've given this a lot of thought in the past few days after my last post asking about how the top-loading door/grill would be affected by raising the hearth. I made a decision. I am guessing that unlike typical front-loaders, I would most likely be inconveniencing myself and my shorter wife especially by raising the stove up. The level already seems just right to put logs in from the top and grill a few steaks. I laid the slate tile for the flush hearth pad this weekend and will start with that. If I decide after use that there are benefits to raising the stove, then this summer I'll add a raised section. It's almost no trouble, only affecting the bottom of the vented stone-faced heat shield (not yet installed).

Here is a picture of the current progress. I just need to seal the tiles, add grout, and put up the wall (cement board faced with creek stone), and then I'll bring the stove in. Additional work after the stove is in includes more slate tile to the left of the current pad for wood and other stuff, flush border of quarter-sawn oak around the tiles, matching oak mantel over the stone wall.

 

[begreen]

The thread has taken a few tangents. For your stove or any top-loader, I wouldn't put it on a raised hearth. It defeats the purpose of having a top-loader. For a front and possibly side loader, it's a different situation entirely.

Looking good so far. Nice choice of tiles.

 

[PapaDave]

The thread has taken a few tangents. For your stove or any top-loader, I wouldn't put it on a raised hearth. It defeats the purpose of having a top-loader. For a front and possibly side loader, it's a different situation entirely.

Looking good so far. Nice choice of tiles.

Agreed. Unless you happen to be 7.5 ft tall. :cheese:
Keep the pics coming.

 

[Lumber-Jack]

Yes Dude, those "tiles" look great, in fact it looks like you stoled my idea I'm sure those are natural slate tiles like what I want to put around my hearth. Great minds think alike huh ;-)

I like the idea of an open cavity under the stove for wood storage. A metal stand might be more portable if you plan on doing a lot of work on this room and need to temporarily move it out of the way. It would be lighter too if the floor support is iffy.

No problem with floor support BeGreen, the floor of my stove room is a concrete slab. Although the laminate flooring sits on a raised sleeper floor.

 

[OhioBurner©]

The thread has taken a few tangents. For your stove or any top-loader, I wouldn't put it on a raised hearth. It defeats the purpose of having a top-loader. For a front and possibly side loader, it's a different situation entirely.

Looking good so far. Nice choice of tiles.

+1 I think a flush hearth looks better IMO, you just cant do it with most stoves. And for a TL like yours there is not a whole lot of advantage for raising it up. Like the tiles.

 

[fire_man]

I did 3/4 plywood under a sheet of 20 ga steel under durock under micore 300 under durock under 1.5'' thick bluestone with the bluestone hanging over the rest and the rest being trimed like the rest of the houses baseboard... that bluestone really stores the heat and it looks great too!

Hi phatfarmerbob: What's the point of the sheet metal? It conducts heat, not insulates. Usually sheet metal is used as an ember barrier but yours is under layers and layers of other stuff? Just wondering.....

 

[phatfarmerbob]

from what i gathered here it has to be somewhere between the stove and a combustable, i guess an ember could get through a crack in the bluestone,burn through the durock and micore but would be stopped by the metal? any how in hindsight i would have put the metal just under the bluestone but thats 20/20... plus i was waiting on the micore and got antsy so i had to start doin something.

 

[ddddddden]

Our house came with a 20" high hearth, so I never had to think about it. I'm soo glad the stove is not on the floor. Loading wood and scooping ashes = more time and work than one may think. To me, it's kinda like asking,"Why use a workbench when you can do xyz on the floor?" Depends on the stove too though. . .some have pedestal bases that provide a good amount elevation. We had an insert, and now a stove that sits on ~ 4" legs. . .soo glad to have the raised hearth.

 

[nate379]

I should have built mine taller so I don't have to kneel down to load the stove.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

I like the stove up higher ,but i have a TL-300 a well and i think it is already higher than most stoves. Just about right.

 

[Mcbride]

Mine is sitting on a 12 inch platform thats tiled, and its a lot easier to load, clean out the ashes etc.

 

[joecool85]

Our hearth is raised 8" -- mostly for all the aesthetic reasons mentioned earlier -- and is topped in flat fieldstone.

One aspect of a raised hearth I gave some thought to is safety. Raised hearths are commonly edged in something very hard and unforgiving; like stone or brick. If an elderly person or toddler fell and hit the edge of the hearth, it could knock their teeth out.

I made padding for mine out of foam pipe insulation. I slit the insulation lengthwise and it fits over the sharp fieldstone corners all around the edge of the hearth (it's 4" beyond the non-combustible zone). I put it on when we have elderly or toddlers over. It's dark gray and doesn't even look that bad; most people don't notice.

Some years back a little kid did fall and hit the hearth. The padding saved him from any serious injury.

Do you have any more pictures of this installation? This is pretty much what I'm planning on doing with ours and I'd love to see it from a few feet back so I can see the whole hearth.

 

[The Dude]

Our hearth is raised 8" -- mostly for all the aesthetic reasons mentioned earlier -- and is topped in flat fieldstone.

One aspect of a raised hearth I gave some thought to is safety. Raised hearths are commonly edged in something very hard and unforgiving; like stone or brick. If an elderly person or toddler fell and hit the edge of the hearth, it could knock their teeth out.

I made padding for mine out of foam pipe insulation. I slit the insulation lengthwise and it fits over the sharp fieldstone corners all around the edge of the hearth (it's 4" beyond the non-combustible zone). I put it on when we have elderly or toddlers over. It's dark gray and doesn't even look that bad; most people don't notice.

Some years back a little kid did fall and hit the hearth. The padding saved him from any serious injury.

Do you have any more pictures of this installation? This is pretty much what I'm planning on doing with ours and I'd love to see it from a few feet back so I can see the whole hearth.

Is it safe to keep a jar of plutonium that close to the heat?

 

[ozzy73]

Thats a Jar of Pickled Eggs.......

 

[weatherguy]

I thought it was relish