Wood stove ceiling clearance with stove tucked halfway in alcove

[powerscn]

Hello all,

First off this community is amazing. I have been reading threads and researching for our new stove for the past month and this website has by far bee nthe greatest resource. Every night when I get on this forum I crumble up my design paper and throw it away and realize that my situation sucks and my design ideas that I get from pintrest are typically not up to code lol. With that being said, I have a problem that i have not been able to find an answer to and it is really bugging me.

My wife and I moved into a new house this past year and there is a fake log propane insert in a chase that goes up in the center of our house. See the images below. We are tired of paying for propane fill ups already and want to install a wood burner to ease that propane furnace during our winters. We want to remove the fireplace and the ventilation that is currently running through the chase and reframe and build a small alcove for the wood stove to be tucked back into, but not tucked back all the way. Maybe only half of the stove tucked back just so that it will not be taking up our entire living room. Well the side clearances and rear clearances are not an issue at all and we planned on building those around to ensure proper sizes and maybe even a little larger on the sides to get proper air flow, but the ceiling is the issue. Besides making the ceiling 7 feet tall, are their any options since only about half of the stove will be tucked back into the alcove? As you can also see from the photos, there was previous ventilation through a chimney chase and out through the roof that I was going to use. Obviously I will need all new ventilation but the location of the ventilation and the hole in the roof will continue to be used. I have seen some people use a wood beam lintel in the front and then leave it open up inside and vent out at the top but that seems like there would still be tons of trapped heat. I appreciate any help or design ideas that would allow us to place a non-combustable mantel on the wall up above the stove at any height lower than 7 feet off the hearth.

The stove we are looking to purchase is the drolet escape 1800 wood stove on legs for reference. Never imagined that there would be so much detail that needed to go into this. Thanks again for your help!

 

[powerscn]

Below is a build I came across that just has me confused. I cannot figure out how people can get away with set ups like the one below, but i see them a lot and if possible would be osmething I would look into building. The only difference is I would prefer the stove not sit all the way back so that more heat can be dispersed in each direction to the bedrooms more.

 

[EbS-P]

What is on the back side (kitchen side)? I see a junction box up a ways.

Any id the chase walls load bearing?

 

[powerscn]

What is on the back side (kitchen side)? I see a junction box up a ways.

Any id the chase walls load bearing?

Nothing on the back other than a light switch and receptacle. The inside of the front wall does not have anything load bearing it seems but they doubled up studs to that center point to give it more support. Attached is another photo from inside.

 

[EbS-P]

I’m not a fan of the alcove install. Two reasons. They are more complicated to construct and maintain clearances and two what if you want a different stove down the road and it’s clearances are different?

That said I consider an alcove as three walls, floor to ceiling where the stove sits in between the two side walls. Half out still seems like an alcove to me.

Why not just keep the back wall set the stove out on a hearth and a mantle on the back wall. It could look really neat in that space. It’s just a thought.

Knee walls around the sides of the stove sure. If they don’t go to the ceiling is it an alcove??? Probably need a more expert opinion.

I have the 1800 insert still learning it seems to like to run hot on 25’ of flue. Not sure what you will have there but you might plan on a damper.

 

[powerscn]

I’m not a fan of the alcove install. Two reasons. They are more complicated to construct and maintain clearances and two what if you want a different stove down the road and it’s clearances are different?

That said I consider an alcove as three walls, floor to ceiling where the stove sits in between the two side walls. Half out still seems like an alcove to me.

Why not just keep the back wall set the stove out on a hearth and a mantle on the back wall. It could look really neat in that space. It’s just a thought.

Knee walls around the sides of the stove sure. If they don’t go to the ceiling is it an alcove??? Probably need a more expert opinion.

I have the 1800 insert still learning it seems to like to run hot on 25’ of flue. Not sure what you will have there but you might plan on a damper.

Yeah thanks for the responses. That was honestly an option we were looking at it just would cut into our living room 4 feet and be a little difficult to rearrange furniture and stuff. That’s probably the route we will end up going and then at the top of the chase we will run a 90 degree through wall and t it up inside the chase and out the top of the roof. I agree, alcove seems like too much of a hassle. That’s a great point about future stoves with different clearances thank you.

 

[EbS-P]

Yeah thanks for the responses. That was honestly an option we were looking at it just would cut into our living room 4 feet and be a little difficult to rearrange furniture and stuff. That’s probably the route we will end up going and then at the top of the chase we will run a 90 degree through wall and t it up inside the chase and out the top of the roof. I agree, alcove seems like too much of a hassle. That’s a great point about future stoves with different clearances thank you.

If it were my place, my dream would be to take everything out but the back wall of the chase (figure out how to maker the ceiling look right of course) then use the existing chase footprint and hearth for a new slightly elliivated. 8-16” high hearth that would meet all the stove clearances settings the stove back as far as possible to the back kitchen wall. Mantle could be placed on that wall too.

Just my thoughts