Hearthstone Shelburne Install & First Burn

[sheepdog000]

My Hearthstone Shelburne is installed and last night we had our first burn. Here are some pics. I'm open to suggestions. My friend did most of the work and deserves the credit as I had no real clue and was learning as I went. He has an HVAC background and has done many many stove installs. He actually had to fab up some pieces as Lowes, Home Depot, TSC, didn't have what we needed. We did a slow burn at first with some papers to check draft, ect.... Then a couple of small pieces of wood, then after about an hour and a half, I put a couple of dry seasoned pieces in it and had the flue open about 65 - 70%. . THEN, I read in the directions that you can't do that or you will break the stove. You have to do several small burns and choke it off when the stove starts to get hot, ect........ SO, I panicked and choked it out allowing no O2. The stove was hot, but not hot enough to evaporate the water in the kettle on top. I woke up to one of the logs burnt up to ash and the other small log about 65% gone. The house smelled reminiscent of a morning after bonfire. I noticed creosote dripped down the pipe all the way to where the pipe goes into the stove. The attic had a bunch of creosote on the elbow.

I have some stuff to read and a LOT to learn. I guess with this stove I can't damper it down, I have to let er rip. There's no catalyst, but it is efficient, from what the manufacturer states. This is a learning curve. Here's some pics.

 

[sheepdog000]

Pic of the stove with a nice fire. Does anyone know if I can use Duraflame Firesticks in this thing to get it going?

 

[tbuff]

Very nice! What are the clearences on that stove?

 

[kingquad]

Is your stove pipe run backwards? Also, is that single wall stove pipe in your attic space? It should be Class A chimney pipe.

 

[begreen]

Ay caramba, that is a completely illegal attic install. The class A pipe MUST go all the way to the 1st floor ceiling. Using single wall up there is just begging for a house fire. You can already see the creosote dripping on the pipe. Sorry to say this, but your friend did you no favor. It's a really bad installation with several code violations. The fact that he says he has done multiple stove installs is really scary. THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS! Do not burn until correctly installed.

If you can post some closeup pictures of the ceiling support box, that would help. If this is single-wall pipe connecting the stove there may be clearance issues there also. And the pipe needs a proper roof flashing + storm collar. It should be a minimum of 3ft above the roof penetration.

 

[Frostbit]

Its a beautiful stove and hearth. Very nice. However, you have problems with the stack install, specifically with the elbows. Dripping creosote on your very first break in fire means you are going to have it again...all in your attic. Not good.

Get your friend back over there and show him what we see in the pic. Consider looking at your stack as a water drain pipe that flows from the roof to your stove. Each place you have a coupling (such as the elbows), needs to be configured to where each crimped section faces down, toward your stove.

No doubt others will chime in here.

 

[Pagey]

Please heed the wise words of BeGreen. That single wall elbow in the attic is trouble waiting for Murphy to move in. Please, please do not burn again until this issue is corrected with proper Class A offsets/elbows if they are allowed!

 

[weezer4117]

PLLLEEEAASSSEEEEE DONT LIGHT THAT STOVE AGAIN Your stove pipe from the ceiling up is WRONG. I don't see a ceiling support, single wall stove pipe in the attic, the pipe going out of the roof doesn't appear to have 2 inches of clearence around it, I see no approved/recomended supports for the chimney in the attic. All of these issues CANNOT be ignored, I would hate for something to happen to you or your family.....

 

[Hanko]

whos idea was that install? WOW thats bad dude

 

[Frostbit]

It appears he has adequate class A up and through the floor. If the two adjustable el's are not double walled, they need to come out and be changed as well as configured crimps down. I can't see the stack from stove to ceiling well enough to see what it is. You state you had creosote dripping all the way to the stove. If that's the case, its wrong, too.


As stated earlier, do not burn the stove again until the flue system, all of it, is installed correctly and to code.

 

[sheepdog000]

Awwww chit! Yes, the elbows are single walled. He kept saying that since it's only a short run of pipe, the single walled pipe is fine for the elbows. I guess the road to hell really is paved with good intentions. My piping came from Lowes. Thats where I was advised to get the bulk of it from a Stove retailer as they stated it was cheaper that what they were selling it for and pretty much the same thing. I was referred to this Pages 13-15 as my cause of creosote. The stack from the stove to the ceiling is single walled also from Lowes.

 

[Frostbit]

It looks worse each time I view your pics.


What is holding up/supporting the rather heavy section of stack that protrudes through your roof? I don't see anything except that spiral band of thin strapping. It appears to me all the weight is bearing down on the adjustable elbows. If so, also not good!

The home made roof jack and storm collar won't cut it either.

Perhaps the best thing you did here was post and include pics. You may have saved your home from being reduced to ash if you heed the posted warnings here. Get someone over there that knows what he is doing. You can't afford not to.

 

[Frostbit]

If your friend told you the single walled elbows "were fine", he has no idea what he is doing. The whole attic and roof pictorial speaks volumes.

 

[certified106]

On top of the multiple problems already listed it looks like the single wall stack in your living room is too close to the drywall. How far off of the drywall is the pipe? Please heed the above advice and do not burn in this stove until all the issues are corrected this is your life you are gambling with take it seriously!

 

[begreen]

It looks worse each time I view your pics.


What is holding up/supporting the rather heavy section of stack that protrudes through your roof? I don't see anything except that spiral band of thin strapping. It appears to me all the weight is bearing down on the adjustable elbows. If so, also not good!

The home made roof jack and storm collar won't cut it either.

Perhaps the best thing you did here was post and include pics. You may have saved your home from being reduced to ash if you heed the posted warnings here. Get someone over there that knows what he is doing. You can't afford not to.

Have to agree. It is hard to pick out what is correct about this installation. If your insurance co or fire marshal saw this they would red tag the whole thing.

Starting from the floor up:

0) Assuming the hearth pad is kosher and has an R = .8 or higher rating:
1) The corners of the stove must be at least 13" away from the wall while maintaining 16" of hearth in front of the door. This would be ~56" on each side.
2) What is the distance from the single-wall connector pipe to the wall? (min 18" needed)
3) What is being used for a ceiling support box? With single wall pipe it needs to keep the connection 18" from the ceiling.
4) That is not a proper attic insulation shield
5) No single wall in the attic - period. Never do this. It must be class A continuous through the attic.
6) Class A only allows 30 degree offset elbows. If the current setup will not work with this offset, then the hole in the roof at the wrong location.
7) The class A pipe needs to be well supported by either the ceiling support box or a roof bracket.
8) The class A needs to have a proper flashing and storm collar
9) The class A needs to be a minimum of 3 ft above where it penetrates the roof.
10) If the wood being burned is not seasoned, problems mentioned above are going to be compouned

I can appreciate being excited and wanting to do a one-stop shopping to get the stove installed, but often big-box stores don't have all the parts you need. You have a nice stove that is going to need an equally nice installation to be safe and trouble-free. The flue/chimney system is a semi-permanent part of the house infrastructure and as important as having a good quality stove. There is no room for compromise here. Your life depends on getting this completely corrected. Take a deep breath and assess what it is going to take to get this done correctly.

 

[Bub381]

It also looks like tar sealing the double pipe on the roof,i can guarantee that's dripped somewhere if it doesn't catch fire it should have.Get an installer in there and now!! Sorry,i know you tried but these guys know their stuff.I noticed the single wall elbows right off.Put your hand on those while it's burning.Good thing you didn't close em in.

 

[DanCorcoran]

Here's my Shelburne installation (by professionals). I have the heat shield on the back of the stove, so the side clearances are reduced (as shown in your owner's manual). The flue is single-wall, going into double-wall Class A up at the ceiling. Note that the single-wall is a minimum of 18" away from any combustible surface (the ceiling and the beam).

On the exterior, the chimney is very tall in order to comply with the 3-2-10 rule (three feet above the roof surface and two feet above any part of the roof which is within 10 feet horizontally...the ridge).

You'll love the Shelburne once you get the installation up to snuff. I know it's disappointing to start off like this, but at least you've found a forum where there's a wealth of accurate info.

P.S. If you plan to use the bucket for ashes, be sure to get a tight-fitting lid and don't set the bucket on any combustible surface. The coals can stay live for days, even in an apparently well-sealed container.

P.P.S. I just noticed...my 1000th post. Brewski time!

 

[Pagey]

The good news is that you took the time to take pics and post them here. I think it's more than safe to say that every member wants every other member to, above all, have a safe install combined with safe burning habits.

 

[tbuff]

Wow, I didnt even look at the pipe work until reading the posts above, I only looked at the stove pic itself and the clearences looked a little "tight." Word of advice, call an exoert out and have them re-pipe that the proper way, with the correct materials, it is much worth the money. My home owners insurance required a copy of the invoice saying a porfessional installed the flue. Stove is still nice though.

 

[tbuff]

The good news is that you took the time to take pics and post them here. I think it's more than safe to say that every member wants every other member to, above all, have a safe install combined with safe burning habits.

+ 1 on this also.

 

[PapaDave]

All the bases have been covered, ....I think.
The single wall el's are helping to cool the flue exhaust too, and contributing to the creosote situation.
If you have a proper ceiling support box, everything from there to the stove is probably salvageable, but the stove pipe should have the crimped (male ) end pointing down toward the stove, which is opposite HVAC pipe install.
Check the charts for Class A offsets to see if you can use the existing hole in the roof. With Class A pipe and offsets.
It might seem like everyone is picking on you or berating you. On the contrary, we're glad you posted the pics before this turned into a very bad situation. Look at it as a learning experience, and you'll come out the other side with a better understanding and know it's been done correctly.
All these guys jumping in to help is exactly why I love this place. Keep us updated.

 

[sheepdog000]

I don't feel like I am being berated or picked on at all. I greatly appreciate the input. I wouldn't have posted otherwise. My buddy came back out today and re-did a few things. He swears up and down that the single wall elbows will be just fine. My wife is red hot pissed & were gonna have one of the people who sold us the stove have a look. It's a messed up situation, my buddy was helping and is a great guy. He is very knowledgeable, but his pipe runs right out and up the side of the house. His looks great and has had no problems. He got a small fire going tonight to check the draft and everything else out. It looks fine, but I'm erring on the side of caution and keeping my wife happy. I have faith in my buddy, but I am a rookie here and am a bit confused. BTW, the creosote in those pipe is from a burn last night only. It was from wood that I bought last spring and has been sitting in my shed ever since. Now, I did shut the damper all the way off last night and choked it out. I'm thinking that's where the creosote came from. To make my wife happy and to satisfy my own curiosity, It's getting looked at again my a stove guy who sold me the stove.

Measurements for the singe wall pipe are 15.5" from the left side of pipe, 21" from the right side of pipe, and 24" to the corner. The drywall is cold to the touch.

 

[Bub381]

No need explaining anymore,the stove guy will fill you in.If someone tells you those elbows are fine then you better have the fire dept come inspect it because you will lose a house and a whole lot more.I surely hope you understand.You should get to researching that pipe assembly online.You can find it in hundreds of places.I'm sure your buddy is 1 heck of a fella but we all can be wrong.Look at how many posts some of these guys have posted here.The moderators also wouldn't be moderators if they hadn't a clue to what they're saying.We're just doing ya a favor.You have a good night and keep us informed on the inspection.As far as the creosote,it shouldn't be leaking is the problem.We know there's gonna be some in the pipe.

 

[Nonprophet]

Sheepdog,

I know your friend means well, and it's an awkward situation for you as he's doing it for free, but please listen to what the folks here are telling you--they really know what they're talking about. If god forbid you ever had a fire due to the improper install, you can bet your bottom dollar that your insurance company would NOT honor a claim based upon a faulty/illegal install.


NP

 

[Frostbit]

It still isn't right. Looks much better on the roof with the jack, but the strapping holding up the final section of Class A won't do it. Neither will the adjustable el's still in place. I can't tell what you have from the ceiling down.

Your wife is correct and duly peeved. Get the stove guys over.