Beginner Questions

[wibblewobble]

Hello all,

I have some newbie questions for you guys.

I have a 1800 SQ FT house over 3 levels including the currently unfinished basement in Rhode Island. I plan to insulate the basement either this year or next.

I have been looking at the "Drolet 2,400-sq ft Wood Stove" - http://goo.gl/MEUXYx and a magic heat - http://goo.gl/JTsM6r

My plan is to put the stove in the basement and run the chimney from there up through the house out on to the roof. I would plan to add air grates/vents to the floors to allow the heat to spread as much as possible through the house.

My questions -

A - Do I need double or triple wall chimney pipe inside the home?

B - Should I look at some sort of fresh air inlet either connected to the stove or just in the basement?

C - Is it OK to run the chimney up through the house or should I be planning to get it out side as soon as possible?

D - Where is a good source to find the relevant building code?

Thank you!

 

[begreen]

Double wall chimney is often the superior product and it has a smaller diameter making it easier to install. Hard to say whether you will need a OAK or not. Often in basement installs it's a good idea. If you can run the chimney up through the house that would be better.

Forget about the Magic Heat. It's not necessary or appropriate to use on a high-efficiency EPA stove.

 

[wibblewobble]

Thank you for the quick reply.

Is an OAK a fresh air inlet?

I emailed the city and they told me to use code/instructions included with stove.

I don't want to install and then be told it is not to code. I presume clearances etc should be the same for the chimney if is is passing though a ceiling or from the basement to the 1st floor?

I have seen instructions for another stove but it did not show from basement to first floor.

Not sure if you cover code questions on the forum or not? If not let me know and I will stop asking! =)

 

[Jags]

Magic heat is evil - bad, bad, bad on the newer stoves.
Get the manual for the stove and read the install specs. Then re-read them. They have everything laid out to make for a very code compliant install. Check with your Ins Co. to make sure they are good with the stove or if they have any requirements (mine wanted the install to be done by a pro, not DIY).

OAK - Outside Air Kit. Yes, a fresh air inlet to the stove.

 

[wibblewobble]

Thanks, I'll drop the magic heat idea =)

Good point on the Ins Co. I will check this out.

 

[Sprinter]

I would plan to add air grates/vents to the floors to allow the heat to spread as much as possible through the house.

There may be codes you need to watch for those vents, too.

OAK is especially a good idea in a fairly tight house. You don't want the stove to have to compete for air with bathroom fans and clothes driers, etc. It can create a negative pressure in the house and affect the stove's draft. Leaky houses it isn't as much of a problem. OAK's are actually required for mobile home installations for that reason.

 

[Sprinter]

There are some threads regarding getting heat around from a basement. Here's one: https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/floor-registers-moving-heat-up-from-the-basement.54989/

 

[begreen]

The flue/chimney code will not be covered by the stove manual. I suggest downloading the M&G Duravent installation manual for guidance.
(broken link removed to http://www.duravent.com/docs/product/L150_W.pdf)

You might want to rethink this and put the stove upstairs where the hear is actually needed. Plan the stove location well and you may not need to cut vents (another fire code issue). Until the basement walls and rim joist are fully insulated the heat loss to outdoors will be on the order of 33% loss. That means 1 cord out of 3 are heating outdoors. You can see why insulating the basement is a priority. The other priority would be locating the stove. If it's far away from the basement stairs heat is going to have a tough time convecting upstairs.

 

[wibblewobble]

Thanks for the PDF, I will read that this afternoon.

Yes, insulating the basement is a priority. I have priced this out already.

I'm pretty set on having it in the basement. I work at home and the basement will be my workshop eventually.

Things are complicated as there is radon in the basement. Not very high but high enough that I will probably be installing a radon fan. So closing any leaks in the basement is a priority for that. I think this means I will need to have an OAK installed.

Does an OAK have to be linked to the stove physically or can it just be a vent in a basement window?

Yes, seems like you can't just cut register holes and put them in. Smoke/fire can rise up through the house quickly if the stove has issues and stuff could be dropped down from above on to the stove. Very good points! I will do some more research on the code for these. But will work on the stove, chimney and insulation for now.

Thank you all again!