Wood Stove Heat Shield...

[ezbme]

We just bought a used cast iron wood stove on craigslist for $60! It is in great condition & included the stove pipe & chimney. This is going to be installed in our cabin, not the bus - its just too big for the bus.

My questions are: what is everyone using for a heat shield, how far does the stove have to be from it & what is the gap between the shield & the wall? Since this is going to be installed in a wood cabin the distance may need to be different then on a metal walled bus, not sure... I saw the manufacture of the stove says 36" between the walls & the stove but our cabin is small & that will take up too much room & we are trying to find a material that will allow us to have it closer to the heat shield... Any input is greatly appreciated!!!

Jonathan

[paul iossi]

get a copy of the international building code, it will have current specific info, IIRC 5/8 firex drywall, or mineral board on the wall and then a metal heat shield with a 1" air space between the shield and the wall will work wonders, just make sure that the spacers are fireproof and don't conduct heat.

[ezbme]

Thanks for the responses so far. Smitty, it is a sealed cast iron stove made by Vogelzang. Just cuz its inexpensive doesn't mean it isn't quality made... I think the price was so low as it is rather hard to sell wood stoves in south Florida... They still make this model & it retails for around $350-$400. I need to get the grate for it & then it is ready to install. As far as the metal shield, what type of metal is a good choice & how thick should it be? I was thinking of using stainless just for the look. We will be putting a heat shield on the floor also but still contemplating what to use on the walls.
Thanks again, Jonathan

[ezbme]

Originally Posted by Smitty

lol, didn't mean to make it sound as if you bought a "pile" Does it have firebrick, and gasketed door? You might check their site, not all stoves require a grate. It can actually increase wood useage. Air leakage into a woodburner allows less control of maintaining a fire. Be sure you get a flue brush, and clean the smoke piping once a month during heavy useage. Keep cleaning in mind when you install the stove & piping (try & go straight up if possible), or add a cleanout tee to prevent having to dismantle any piping to clean it. This is an area you don't want to fail to keep up on, flue fires aren't fun.

Regarding the metal, really about anything, as long as it won't warp once it gets warm, not that it would hurt anything. I think someone here used the corrugated roof panels in their bus around their stove. Being corrugated would help resist warping, and I don't think it's too expensive. Stainless would be fine, but expensive to buy.

Smitty

Hey thanks for the info Smitty! It doesn't have firebrick & the manufacturer suggests & the reviews I read state I should use a grate or at least firebrick. The door is not gasketed...
The smoke pipe is going to have to have (2) 90's to go through the wall as I do not want to cut a hole in the new metal roofing. The cleanout tee - whats it look like & hows it work? We will be using this as our heat source for the winter so I want to be sure we do not have any issues that may cause a chimmney fire! I just put a flue brush on our "to get" list.

Jonathan

[arfisher83]

Hey, Smitty, thanks for the advice. I will be installing a stove in our house in October. Right now I am splitting and stacking wood from a neighbor's enormous oak tree they had cut down. I have two chords split and stacked, and I estimate I will acquire another three chords by the time I am done.
I can't beat the price on the stove - it's free. A neighbor used it for years and upgraded to a much more expensive stove. I haven't seen it, but he says it needs cleaned up. It's an Englander brand stove, so I think that's a decent brand.
I plan to install it in our basement. We have 9' ceilings, so I plan to run the pipe as high as I can in the room, put a 90 degree elbow in it, run it through the wall, and then up the side of the house (similar to how I installed my stove in my bus). I will have to check with our insurance requirements when deciding on clearances and type of stove pipe.
Don't be surprised if I ask you a question later on down the road when I tackle this project. I'd appreciate any advice that you would be willing to give.

Adam