# Floor Protection for pellet stove



## fespo (Oct 14, 2007)

Hello all, I have a Englander pellet stove and I need some help on building a hearth pad/floor protection. I will be installing this stove in our living room and I will be using on the really cold days when my Lopi cant keep up. the floor of the living room floor is plywood.

the Manual states that " If the floor is constructed of combustible material such as hardwood, linoleum, or carpet, the you will be required to use floor protection between the unit and the combustible.The protection should be U.L approved or equal, and should be large enough to provide a minimum of one inch (1") behind and four inches (4) on both sides of stove. The clearance in front of the stove should be at least six inches (6). the freestanding pellet unit will need a minimum 31"x 32" floor protector."

I did go into town to ask out building inspectors, but they had no clue what i should build. I was told to call the company. So here I am asking. My plan (1) was to remove carpet, use (2 ) 1/2" sheets durock over the metal studs, and tile. Plan ( 2) was to remove carpet, lay-down Durock and tile. the size of the hearth pad was going to be about 38" wide and 44 long"I just don't know how much floor protection I need for this stove. I know better safe then sorry. But do pellet stoves need a raised hearth pad? thanks for all and any help Fespo


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## GVA (Oct 14, 2007)

No need to tear up the carpet..
get a chunk of plywood 1/2"......Screw down some durock.......Get a tile that you like put it on, grout it up, put a oak edging around the edges, and its done...
This hearth pad can be removed at a later date..
This is not really a heat protection issue but rather a issue when you are cleaning the burnpot and get some clinkers on the floor...


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## jtp10181 (Oct 14, 2007)

Also some stove shops are going to sell pre-built hearth pads. We do at ours. There are tons of different tiles and patterns used and they work great for pellet stoves.


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## tsunamiscott (Oct 14, 2007)

I did as Pyro Extraordinaire recommends and placed 6" slate tile over Durarock, screwed to plywood.  You can save a lot of $$$ making the hearth pad yourself.


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## Gooserider (Oct 16, 2007)

Hopefully Mike from Englander will be able to confirm, but normally pellet stoves have minimal hearth requirements - not much in the way of R-value, mostly just that the surface the stove is sitting on be "non-combustible".  

GVA's suggestion will give you a nice movable floor protector.  If you want something more permanent, and possibly flush to the floor, cut out an appropriate size chunk of carpetting, maybe the first layer of subfloor depending on the thickness, and put down 1/2" Durock, (not all Cement board is the same, I only feel REALLY comfortable w/ the Durock brand on floor protectors) and tile over it.

Gooserider


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## wilbilt (Oct 16, 2007)

I built one in this past weekend in a similar manner. I was not concerned about portability, so I cut out and removed the carpet and padding to expose the subfloor.
I screwed down 2 layers if 1/4" HardiBacker and tiled over it with standard ceramic floor tile.

The only reason I used the HardiBacker is because it was leftover from a bathroom remodel (as was the tile). If I was starting from scratch, I would have bought a piece of Durock or similar. As has been stated, the issue is not really one of heat conductivity, but one of having a non-combustible surface to protect the floor.

The stove has been burning for about 12 hours as I type this and the tile surface is cool to the touch, as is the base of the stove. My secondhand stove actually came with an approved hearth pad made of thin sheet metal over some lightweight material. I think the "protection" aspects of this pad are questionable to say the least. It's also quite ugly.


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## thephotohound (Oct 16, 2007)

Fespo -

Where are you located? I'm getting rid of an old hearth pad that sounds like it would work great... check it out:

http://worcester.craigslist.org/hsh/446053922.html

I'll give you a better deal than what it's listed for... you know, the Hearth.com discount (this goes for anyone here, too).

John


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## fespo (Oct 16, 2007)

thanks John But im in the Chicago land area.


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## cogger (Oct 17, 2007)

I just made a 64" x 48" slate tile hearth pad for under $50

Here is what I did for supplies

2 sections of roof flashing 2'x5' over wood floor
1 dozen 16" slate tiles
19' of molding 

since I did not mortar or seal seams the flashing will serve as a protectant from micro embers. The seams are real tight with the molding tightly nailed around the square hearh pad. Depending on the molding will determine screws or penny nails. But this was cheap, quick and simple. You need a handsaw and hammer.
I trimed my flashing after the tiles where set before placing moldings.

If you go over carpet use plywood, then flash or mortar over wood.


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