My wood stove journey with pictures

[billslade]

This spring I moved into a 700 sq ft house in central WV with electric heat. Decided pretty quickly a wood stove would pay for itself in a couple years. So off to a local fireplace store where I fell in love with a Hampton H300 but not the $3100 price.

After a quick internet search I found a brand new Hampton H300 with fan for $1200 on EBay. Also no tax and free shipping! It seemed too good to be true but arrived a couple weeks later in perfect condition.

I built the hearth with 3/4" osb board, 2 layers of 1/2" Durock next gen and porcelean tile. Turned out pretty good for never working with tile before.

For the stove pipe I went with DuraTech purchased from WoodStovePro.com They were extremely helpful and the price can't be beat. Everything arrived in perfect condition and after a couple days the install was complete. I did have to use a 30° offset in the attic to avoid the roof support beam, for the ceiling support I cut and braced around it.

I was concerned with the heat not making it to the back bedroom so installed an inline fan (in the attic) with variable speed switch. This is pushing the cold air from the bedroom floor to the stove room ceiling and allowing the heat to move more efficiently through the kitchen, dining room and then into the bedroom. Works great!!

A big thanks to this forum and all the helpful info that got me through the process! I really didn't ask any questions and was able to find all the info I needed.

The property has plenty of good wood so I cut up four cords of dead standing black locust and oak.

So far so good! I'm enjoying the warmth and look forward to a cozy winter.

Thanks again!

 

[Woody Stover]

Looking good! An a shed full of wood is always appealing. Where did you get the 3 x 3s? Is rain or wind going to blow up under that shingle where the brace attaches to the roof, or did you goop the heck out of it?

 

[kennyp2339]

Beautiful stove and nice job tiling the hearth, that should keep you very warm through out the winter, welcome to the club.

 

[Ctstove84]

Nice looking setup.Now sit back and enjoy the warmth!!

 

[saydinli]

Nice job.. Looks great. Sounds like you got a smoking deal on that stove as well !!

 

[Simonkenton]

Looking good! Four cords of dead standing locust and oak, man, you are starting out in tenth gear! That is the best firewood available.

Good looking install you ought to go into business.

How close is the corner of that stove to the wall?

 

[billslade]

Looking good! An a shed full of wood is always appealing. Where did you get the 3 x 3s? Is rain or wind going to blow up under that shingle where the brace attaches to the roof, or did you goop the heck out of it?

The 3x3s and some other random wood was left in the barn. My grandfather collected this wood from a local lumber yard about 40 years back. I believe they are oak and tulip poplar and figured I may as well burn them up.

The bracket on the roof is gooped up and sits pretty flat. I mounted the brackets different from what they showed but this seems to work well. No leaks yet and I'll keep a close look on it.

 

[billslade]

Looking good! Four cords of dead standing locust and oak, man, you are starting out in tenth gear! That is the best firewood available.

Good looking install you ought to go into business.

How close is the corner of that stove to the wall?

Thanks Simonkenton!

The corner is about 13" to the wall. I'm allowed to be as close as 9" with the double wall pipe. The clearance I had to watch the most was for the side door. I had to leave 18" min for this.

The wall only gets up to approx 100 deg with a hot burn. The double wall design of the stove helps radiate the heat. I was surprised how cool the hearth stays under the stove.

 

[billslade]

I believe I read somewhere that it's a good idea to burn a hot fire with the draft control/damper fully open for 10-15 min once a day.

Any truth in this? Thanks!

 

[WayneN]

Looks great!

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[firefighterjake]

I believe I read somewhere that it's a good idea to burn a hot fire with the draft control/damper fully open for 10-15 min once a day.

Any truth in this? Thanks!

That's old school thinking ... I bring the stove up to temp (as well as he flue temp) and then start closing off the air. Truthfully on a cold start or reload after an overnight burn I have the air control open for awhile, but I wouldn't say it's running hot as I am in the Goldilocks Zone ...

 

[velvetfoot]

I have the insert version of that stove. Sure wish I could've done the freestanding version. Yours is beautiful!

I open the door to get things going, close the door, run with air rod progressively pushed in until all the wood is charred, then close it down to maybe 1/4" out, or even 0" for the rest of the burn.

Do you have a fan?

 

[billslade]

I have the insert version of that stove. Sure wish I could've done the freestanding version. Yours is beautiful!

I open the door to get things going, close the door, run with air rod progressively pushed in until all the wood is charred, then close it down to maybe 1/4" out, or even 0" for the rest of the burn.

Do you have a fan?

Thanks for the info!

I do have the fan. It's nice as it goes on and off automatically but not necessary. It feels good when you are in front of the stove but not sure it really helps heat up the room any faster.

 

[WayneN]

I was wondering the same thing. Does the fan even make a difference? I have one on my Madison but can't tell. I didn't run it long enough to see lol

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[begreen]

It does heat up the room faster. When temps are in the teens you will notice.

 

[WayneN]

When it's on hi it makes a lot of noise. I guess if we are all upstairs sleeping it won't bother us I'll test it soon. Thanks!

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[billslade]

When it's on hi it makes a lot of noise. I guess if we are all upstairs sleeping it won't bother us I'll test it soon. Thanks!

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I run mine most of the time on low. It's a bit loud on high.