Intro / Hearthstone Heritage Install

Greetings, all! Look forward to getting to know everyone as my life in this new era begins... Hope you enjoy watching/reading about this install, which should happen in a couple days. So excited.

After a loooooot of research, we decided to upgrade my existing fireplace to an efficient wood stove. I've loved burning in a fireplace, but the tendency to suck heat out of the house drove me insane. Definitely looking to capture and return that heat so I'm not paying the man as much for propane.

We wanted soapstone because of the stove's location, and because of its visual appeal. I would have loved a WS, but its clearances required too much. The Heritage works nicely, so that's what we're going with. And it is a pretty dang good looking stove.

The first picture was our last fire. God rest its soul.

The existing firebox was built well for what it is. Large firebrick angled in for maximum heat deflection (Rumford). Also, and to my benefit for the stove, it was ventilated. At the front of the firebox is a 5'' vent built through the brick, plumbed under the firebox, which feeds outside air and supposedly eliminates draw from the house. We found it was insufficient.

I asked the Heritage installer if he'd plumb an outside air kit through this vent, which he would not. So I plan to. The second pic shows the work. I think it turned out well. The hose is insulated, and initial temperature readings show no heat loss, though it's pretty mild today. We'll see how it does over the rest of the winter, and how the stove performs with it connected.

With that completed, I turned to the chimney, which is exterior, so I need a block off plate. Again, the installer won't do this, so I'm working on that too. I feel like this project is more difficult since I don't know exactly how the liner will snake through my existing damper. I've got a couple ideas, but feel great pressure to be able to get it up quickly so as to not delay the guy doing the stove install. The last pic is my work at a couple options. The plan is to hang it with wire from the damper area, then seal the edges with high temp silicone. Rockwool on top, radiant bubble insulation on the bottom, and stove door gasket around the venting. I'm not too worried about high temps in this area since the stove will be forward of the firebox and on the hearth - it's the cold from the chimney I hope to seal off. Will the bubble insulation will be okay? Updates next week after I get it up there...

So anyways, good to meet you all. I look forward to posting 'completed' pics, as well as initial impressions of my first few burns.

 

Monadnock monster


Howdy neighbor

 

For those that may have not heard this story.


'Bigfoot' suit: NH is stomping on civil liberties

 

I would not use that...its not rated for being used in a hot area at all...which even an insert stove will got really hot when the power is out. Rockwool (mineral wool) or ceramic blanket is what you want to use under the sheetmetal

 

Live free or die, right?!?!?!

 

Yup, you're right, it's gone. Thanks for the input.

 

FIFY


Edit: I do agree if a fella wants to throw his fait into the wind and walk around in a gorilla suit in an area where many are armed that’s his choice.

 

Ugh! What was supposed to be the greatest day of my life turned into the worst disappointment.

Installers arrived (10 hours late) only to tell me my chimney is too tall and they need a lift. They claim they told my salesperson weeks ago so he could notify me, but that never happened.

So now it's a scramble to find an available lift ($500!) on a day where they can squeeze me in. Maybe Thursday, maybe Sunday.

 

It's things like this^^^^^ that cause me to avoid any "service" that I might be able to do myself. It usually leads to delays, frustration, and unexpected expenses.

 

Are they suggesting you need to pay for the lift?

 

Oh yah, I'm paying, or I can cancel the order for a refund of course.

 

Wow, that stinks. The dealer must have come out to measure for the liner?

 

House was built in 1999.

Dealer did not come to measure the liner. They just ordered a 35' liner, which I guess is standard length (?), which will work for me because the firebox sits quite a bit higher than ground level. We're estimating the length of the chimney, from the ground to the chimney cap, is about 41'.

They've shifted their schedule and will be here Thursday. I've got a boom lift reserved for the fine cost of $375. Really hope this works out.

 

YES, the best day of my life has happened!

The install went relatively smooth, except it was super wet and I made serious ruts in my nice grass towing the lift into place. But, because of the issues I've had, the company's gonna refund $200.

The only thing I'm wondering, as I watch my first break-in fire dwindle, is that it appeared the damper had little impact. On the lowest setting, I expected the fire to go out, or maybe smolder, but it kept burning strong. Something to keep an eye on.

Pics....

 

Very happy to see this thread and quite excited for you.
My best advice would be to start with the manual and read it cover to cover so you are familiar with the design / operation and all the little ins and outs of the stove. I have a question about your observation: do you have a damper on the flue or is this the primary air control?

I don't know if I'm making sense, but I know some others will chime in and give you better advice than I can- but what I'm trying to get at- the damper isn't an emergency brake or an escape hatch- it's to throttle the exhaust of the stove to make the burn more controllable but it won't act as a kill switch.

So back to the point I hope I was making- I think of using my stove the same way I use my chainsaw, the same way I ride my motorcycle and the same way I use my pistol. Each has a very specific purpose and way it is designed to be operated and the margin for error is at most slim, and at least almost zero.

Good luck with your burning- looking forward to following this thread and seeing how you like the stove. FWIW I'm a personal fan of the way a stove looks exhausted out a brick fireplace over the way some inserts look, but to each their own for each person. I think your install looks great.

 

The Heritage and the GM60 are Hearthstone's most popular stoves. Many happy users. Enjoy!