# is a hearth rug a hearth extender?



## billz (Nov 13, 2010)

my hearth is to short by about 3 inches.  can  I just put down a hearth rug   Will that meet code


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## Backwoods Savage (Nov 13, 2010)

No. Rug and heart are 2 different things.


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## stejus (Nov 13, 2010)

What are you trying to do?  Is this an insert?


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## EatenByLimestone (Nov 13, 2010)

http://www.woodlanddirect.com/Fireplace-Accessories/Hearth-Rugs?gclid=CMKX6KL6nqUCFQo65Qod2A2rJg


They don't read like they are non combustible.  

Can you decrease the room needed behind your stove with a shield and spacers off the wall?

Edit to add: I've had embers shoot a couple feet into the room in the past.  

Matt


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## billz (Nov 14, 2010)

stejus said:
			
		

> What are you trying to do?  Is this an insert?



sorry.  yes this is a insert in a masonry fireplace.    I end up with about 14 inches from the door to the edge of brick hearth.  so can I just put a rug down in front of the brick?   thanks


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## begreen (Nov 14, 2010)

A hearth rug is not the same as a qualified hearth.

Is the brick hearth at floor level or is it elevated from the floor? If it is elevated, then a good hearth rug will probably suffice. But if it is at floor level, it may be better to think about a small hearth extension with a hearth extension pad, or a permanent extension. Can you post a picture of your new setup? That would help answer some questions.


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## tomWright (Nov 14, 2010)

waz said:
			
		

> stejus said:
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Look at a different insert. One reason I went with the jotul 550 was the flat face. It only projects 1/2 inch onto the hearth, which give me about 20 inches clear. 

There are quite a few flush fit inserts like this for wood from good manufacturers. Which to choose depends on what is sold by dealers in your area, unless you want to trust to mail order. 
I do not know about pellet inserts, or if any offer a flush fit, but I do not recall seeing any when I was making that decision a while back.

Which are you looking to install?


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## tickbitty (Nov 14, 2010)

Go to Northline express or one of the other online dealers and look up 
"hearth extender" it's a black metal board 18" X 48" that extends your ember protection to whatever is required - and when it's not burning season you can just pick it up and put it in a closet or something.  Simple!  They are about 50 or 60 bucks.







They are made for situations like yours.  My hearth is flush so I put the board all the way up to the front of the insert, and make it so it won't move till I want to move it by putting temporary adhesive down under the corners.
They are not the most attractive thing in the world but very functional.


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## ansehnlich1 (Nov 14, 2010)

If I recall you must have a continuous hearth protection, meaning, laying something in front of the hearth and pushing it up against the base of the hearth is not enough. Embers could fall in the crack there and that would be a BAD thing. I'm not trying to nit pick here, but when burning a wood stove I attempt to be quite vigilant when it comes to safety. Should you ever have a fire, would you be happy to have an insurance company deny a claim because you did not have the proper length of non combustible hearth out front of your stove? 

I am of the opinion that to be technically correct you would have to extend the hearth to the proper distance and have the proper masonry joint between that hearth and the extension.


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## stejus (Nov 14, 2010)

waz,

Check out my install pics.  I was a few inches short on my hearth.  Each stove has it's own requirements.  In my case, because my hearth is raised, I was able to extend the hearth with a non combustible material.  I picked up some stove and laid it on top of a wool rug.  This passed code and I also remove the stone at the end of the burn season.  If your hearth is raised, you may be in the same situation.


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## billz (Nov 14, 2010)

thanks for all the replys.  
I want to be within code.  I bought this stove off craglist for $300.  it's 4 years old and made by high valley.
so picking a different insert isn't an option.  Think I'll look at adding tile or something in front of the brick.


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## tickbitty (Nov 15, 2010)

That's a very nice insert, and a great deal!  If you get some kind of hearth extension there you will meet the requirements and protect your nice rug too!


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## ansehnlich1 (Nov 15, 2010)

Yeah that's a nice looking setup. Maybe find some brick pavers and run a row of 'em across the front there.

Whatever ya do, make sure you take pics 

We LOVE pics!


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## KYrob (Nov 15, 2010)

My owners manual says if there isn't enough clearance from the front of the door to the edge of the hearth to use a floor protector. It must be 3/8" thick and made of a non combustionable material or equivalent. 

Rob


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## begreen (Nov 15, 2010)

At a minimum, you could just use this for the winter and put it away the rest of the year.
http://www.amazon.com/12x48-Extensi...9?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1289785887&sr=1-9


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## tickbitty (Nov 15, 2010)

BeGreen said:
			
		

> At a minimum, you could just use this for the winter and put it away the rest of the year.
> http://www.amazon.com/12x48-Extensi...9?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1289785887&sr=1-9


That's not bad looking and not a bad price, looks a lot better than the stove board kind.


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## stejus (Nov 15, 2010)

I placed this stone in front of my hearth to meet the door requirement.  Cost was about $60.00 for the stone. Most landscape/stone dealers have these because they are used for stairs in landscape projects.  Top and three sides are rough cut, the bottom and back edge are straight cut.


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## tiber (Nov 15, 2010)

I see you're in south carolina, your inspector may treat thing differently. Here where I am they wanted the hearth or hearthpad to be permanant, which means he wanted it fixed to the floor. I protested that nothing is going to move a 480lbs stove off a 100lbs hearthpad I built - I eventually just lied and said I screwed it into the floor.

It's worth asking the question if this will pass.


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## Grisu (Nov 15, 2010)

ansehnlich1 said:
			
		

> If I recall you must have a continuous hearth protection, meaning, laying something in front of the hearth and pushing it up against the base of the hearth is not enough.



Could you (or someone else) please verify that statement? Is that part of NFPA 211 or may that be applicable only in your state? If the hearth needs to be continuous, most people using a hearth extension may violate code. I will need to extend our raised hearth/fireplace with this once our insert is installed. Would be great to know whether that is actually possible.

Plus another question: Is there a difference between a hearth extension and a stove board (other than looks)? Thanks!


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## begreen (Nov 15, 2010)

Some jurisdictions may require the hearth extension pad to be held captive by screwing it down in a couple places. If so, not a big deal.


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## billz (Nov 15, 2010)

tiber said:
			
		

> I see you're in south carolina, your inspector may treat thing differently. Here where I am they wanted the hearth or hearthpad to be permanant, which means he wanted it fixed to the floor. I protested that nothing is going to move a 480lbs stove off a 100lbs hearthpad I built - I eventually just lied and said I screwed it into the floor.
> 
> It's worth asking the question if this will pass.




my inspector here is a joke.  he told me I could just slide the insert in and run it...no liner needed!  not even to the first tile.  He side because it is an already existing fireplace that I don't need any inspection done.  From what I've read, not having a liner at least to the first tile is a big no no.

I just want to make it the best I can.  I like the landscape stone idea.  thanks


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## branchburner (Nov 15, 2010)

I used stone. Since I have two layers of subfloor, I decided to make the stone "permanent" by cutting the existing floor. The stone was inset to be flush. No stubbed toes for the kiddos that way.


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## CountryGal (Nov 15, 2010)

When we got our new stove, I had the same issue.  Raised hearth, but short in front, so I had them cut back my carpet and put down tile.


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## Wood Heat Stoves (Nov 15, 2010)

tickbitty said:
			
		

> Go to Northline express or one of the other online dealers and look up
> "hearth extender" it's a black metal board 18" X 48" that extends your ember protection to whatever is required - and when it's not burning season you can just pick it up and put it in a closet or something.  Simple!  They are about 50 or 60 bucks.
> 
> 
> ...



most inspectors will require the hearth(even if ul listed) extention be attached- so you cant move it easily


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## ansehnlich1 (Nov 15, 2010)

Grisu said:
			
		

> ansehnlich1 said:
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A couple thoughts come to mind. The statement in and of itself is verified simply by reading the manual that comes with the stove, and the original post indicates the hearth is short 3 inches. How do we know the hearth is short 3 inches? The answer is that the stove manual calls for a definitive hearth dimension to the front of the stove and the hearth in question is 3 inches short of what the manual calls for.  

My second thought is this, and I posted it earlier in this thread "Should you ever have a fire, would you be happy to have an insurance company deny a claim because you did not have the proper length of non combustible hearth out front of your stove?"

I think that if I am a claims adjuster, and I come across a house fire started by a woodstove, and find the stove manual AND fire code provides for a certain size non combustible hearth, and I find that the hearth in question was not built to code, well, I'm thinkin I'm denying the claim. 

So, if your manual states 18 inches of noncombustible hearth in front of your stove, I recommend going with 18 inches. I don't think it means 15 inches, then a gap, then three more inches. If you want to take that risk so be it. I would not.


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## Renovation (Nov 15, 2010)

If you are worried about the "gap" issue, you could just put a line of mortar between your hearth extension and existing hearth.  Then it is just as continuous as your existing brick hearth.   :coolsmile:


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## tickbitty (Nov 15, 2010)

Huh.  Interesting conversation. My hearth is flush with the floor and that makes my extension options a little different, the insert sits on the hearth and fireplace floor and if I raised the hearth or stove any, it would violate my clearances for the mantel and etc.  So, I put a hearth extender down in front of the stove, overlapping my flush hearth and touching the front of the stove.  The board gets (temporarily) fixed in place so it doesn't slide around and there's no gap, there's actually an overlap, so I feel confident that I have met all the requirements in my manual.  The only other thing I could do possibly do to extend the hearth would involve cutting out hardwood floor and wood subfloor, and notching the joints etc all to end up with a hearth that would not match the appearance of the current one.  (the current one is thick tile/brick that goes down into sort of a cantilever under the floor, it's not tile on top of the hardwood). That is an expensive and not truly necessary modification! So, at least in my case, the stove board extender is what meets the ember protection requirements for a non-combustible 18" in front.  I guess I can screw it down instead of using the temporary adhesive though.


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## ansehnlich1 (Nov 16, 2010)

I just researched the manual for the Jotul F500 Oslo and it states...

"Individual sections of floor protection must be mortared together to prevent sparks from falling through to combustible materials. Any carpeting must be removed from under the floor protection"

The manual also indicates a "minimum" of 18 inches of noncombustible surface to the front of (the front loading door) and to the side of the (side loading door).

Your stove manual may indicate something different.


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