Wood stove in fireplace was the plan. Currently on Plan D. Clearance help

[Bbauma083]

Hello!

I have a 1971 home that had a premanufactured fireplace nestled inside of a masonry chimney. We thought we could remove it and install a free-standing wood stove in place of the fireplace. After burning up my Sawzall blades and cut off discs I purchased a plasma cutter to assist in the removal of said fireplace. I came across the Drolet 1800 and started looking at the clearances and quickly realized that this might not work after all. Here are my measurements.

35.5 inches between brick pillars
48" from top of hearth to red iron
46" backside of chimney to front of hearth
76" from top of hearth to sheetrock ceiling

Best thing I can come up with now is using a woodstove insert if I can reduce the clearances with a heat shield on the ceiling. I did see the reductions for a free-standing wood stove for ceiling clearances but not the insert as I need 84 " from top of hearth to ceiling. I am open to extending the hearth out to accommodate something, but I really do not want to do any more demo. Any and all feedback, tips, words of encouragements, insults are very welcome.

 

[bholler]

Hello!

I have a 1971 home that had a premanufactured fireplace nestled inside of a masonry chimney. We thought we could remove it and install a free-standing wood stove in place of the fireplace. After burning up my Sawzall blades and cut off discs I purchased a plasma cutter to assist in the removal of said fireplace. I came across the Drolet 1800 and started looking at the clearances and quickly realized that this might not work after all. Here are my measurements.

35.5 inches between brick pillars
48" from top of hearth to red iron
46" backside of chimney to front of hearth
76" from top of hearth to sheetrock ceiling

Best thing I can come up with now is using a woodstove insert if I can reduce the clearances with a heat shield on the ceiling. I did see the reductions for a free-standing wood stove for ceiling clearances but not the insert as I need 84 " from top of hearth to ceiling. I am open to extending the hearth out to accommodate something, but I really do not want to do any more demo. Any and all feedback, tips, words of encouragements, insults are very welcome.

View attachment 302547

Wow you made things way more complicated than need be for sure. I am assuming you just had a heat form metal firebox in there that you could have just installed an insert and liner in. Now I am not sure what the right answer is

 

[begreen]

Are the brick side pillars all masonry, no wood framework inside? If so the stove can go in there. Clearance requirements are to combustibles. If the enclosure is 100% non-combustible, then they do not apply. The next step is figuring out the chimney support.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Are there any ZC fireplaces that’ll fit in there?

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Ok, the PE FP16 is 38” wide. That’ll be inner course of bricks removed.

 

[begreen]

The ceiling clearance for the Escape 1800 is 77". Close enough. I don't think this would be an issue. If concerned, the manual details reducing clearances for walls and ceiling starting in section 7.4.

 

[Bbauma083]

Wow you made things way more complicated than need be for sure. I am assuming you just had a heat form metal firebox in there that you could have just installed an insert and liner in. Now I am not sure what the right answer is

Wow you made things way more complicated than need be for sure. I am assuming you just had a heat form metal firebox in there that you could have just installed an insert and liner in. Now I am not sure what the right answer is

I tend to do that in all facets of my life. It was a Majestic branded premanufactured fireplace. I only had about 20 inches of clearance from the bottom of the hearth to the top of the opening. At that time, I was not interested in an insert and assumed that I could just slide a woodstove into that opening if I just remove it. Knowing what I know now, I might have reconsidered. The fireplace wasn't in great shape either (as I demolished it) as the flue has been uncovered for most of its 51 years in existence. Alot of rust.

 

[Bbauma083]

Are the brick side pillars all masonry, no wood framework inside? If so the stove can go in there. Clearance requirements are to combustibles. If the enclosure is 100% non-combustible, then they do not apply. The next step is figuring out the chimney support.

Yes, all masonry. I asked Drolet customer service about this.

Q: :Looking for clearances to a non combustible alcove. There was a fireplace in a masonry chimney and it’s all block/brick. There’s no combustibles at all. Can I get closer than the minimums given the construction of the alcove? Specifically it’s the “ceiling” of the alcove. Part of it would be under the alcove and little of the front would be outside of the alcove. There is clearance to the ceiling outside of the alcove but not in the alcove.

A:Thanks for reaching out to us today. Even though the materials are completely non-combustible, you must maintain the required clearances for an alcove installation for safety reasons, and also because the appliance may overheat which will void your appliance warranty.

I don't care about the warranty. I just care that it's installed to meet manufacture specifications so it'll pass muster with my inspector and my insurance company. Wasn't really sure how to proceed with that information so I asked a follow up question...

Q: Can I reduce the ceiling clearance in an alcove type install with a heat shield?

A: The promblem is not the clearance to combustible or non-combustible; it's the temperature limit that we can reach on the unit. When we do security testing, the stove can not overheat past a certain limit. So, you can not inclose the unit more then specified in the alcove installation.

So, then I thought maybe an insert isn't so bad after all. I asked another question and am still awaiting response...Feel free to answer it haha.

Q: Moving to another solution…If I were to install a wood stove insert into my masonry opening as opposed to a freestanding stove would I be able to reduce the clearance to my gypsum ceiling? From Hearth to Sheetrock it’s 76”

 

[bholler]

I tend to do that in all facets of my life. It was a Majestic branded premanufactured fireplace. I only had about 20 inches of clearance from the bottom of the hearth to the top of the opening. At that time, I was not interested in an insert and assumed that I could just slide a woodstove into that opening if I just remove it. Knowing what I know now, I might have reconsidered. The fireplace wasn't in great shape either (as I demolished it) as the flue has been uncovered for most of its 51 years in existence. Alot of rust.

What chimney is above this? Is it a masonry chimney with clay liners? Or a metal chimney?

 

[Bbauma083]

Are there any ZC fireplaces that’ll fit in there?

There might be. I have only been looking at Drolet since they seem to be the best between affordability and quality.

 

[Bbauma083]

What chimney is above this? Is it a masonry chimney with clay liners? Or a metal chimney?

It is a clay lined flue (11 Tiles supported by that red iron) surrounded by brick attached to the exterior of my home.

 

[Bbauma083]

Ok, the PE FP16 is 38” wide. That’ll be inner course of bricks removed.

I am hoping to not have to demo any more than I have. But it may get to that eventually.

 

[bholler]

It is a clay lined flue (11 Tiles supported by that red iron) surrounded by brick attached to the exterior of my home.

Ok sounds like it was just a standard heat form fireplace.

 

[Bbauma083]

The ceiling clearance for the Escape 1800 is 77". Close enough. I don't think this would be an issue. If concerned, the manual details reducing clearances for walls and ceiling starting in section 7.4.

Since I wasn't convinced about sliding the stove under the chimney given the clearances, I looked to install the back of the wood stove in the same plane as the front of the CMU blocks shown between the pillars. That appears to be an "alcove" install as well. Drolet said you cannot further reduce the ceiling in an alcove configuration. Maybe I should try another customer service representative?

 

[begreen]

77" is the alcove ceiling height. At 76" you are just an inch short. The stove is not going to overheat in this circumstance. If this was a concern then most inserts would be in trouble and certainly freestanding stoves in a fireplace would be at risk. Yes, try another support person. Or another stove company. Look at the Jotul F45 as an alternative. You should be able to install that stove the location without modifications.

 

[Bbauma083]

77" is the alcove ceiling height. At 76" you are just an inch short. The stove is not going to overheat in this circumstance. If this was a concern then most inserts would be in trouble and certainly freestanding stoves in a fireplace would be at risk. Yes, try another support person. Or another stove company. Look at the Jotul F45 as an alternative. You should be able to install that stove the location without modifications.

Thank you! I will look into that!

 

[Bbauma083]

77" is the alcove ceiling height. At 76" you are just an inch short. The stove is not going to overheat in this circumstance. If this was a concern then most inserts would be in trouble and certainly freestanding stoves in a fireplace would be at risk. Yes, try another support person. Or another stove company. Look at the Jotul F45 as an alternative. You should be able to install that stove the location without modifications.

I think it's just what I needed. it's about a thousand more than what I budgeted for a stove this project but I'll take it!

 

[bholler]

I think it's just what I needed. it's about a thousand more than what I budgeted for a stove this project but I'll take it!

You are still going to need an insulated liner as well

 

[Bbauma083]

You are still going to need an insulated liner as well

I was planning on it. It seems it’s cheaper to wrap it yourself as opposed to buying a pre insulated correct? My father is a pipe insulator and was hoping to coax him into wrapping my liner prior to install.

 

[bholler]

I was planning on it. It seems it’s cheaper to wrap it yourself as opposed to buying a pre insulated correct? My father is a pipe insulator and was hoping to coax him into wrapping my liner prior to install.

We usually wrap our own

 

[Bbauma083]

We usually wrap our own

What kind of insulation do you guys use?

 

[bholler]

What kind of insulation do you guys use?

UL listed liner insulation kits supplied by the manufacturer of the liner we are using