Ideal Steel solo install

I've been through a number of stoves now, like some of you. Hopefully I have finally found the right one! My last which this is replacing is my Jøtul C 550 Rockland which was a great stove but couldn't sustain a long enough burn for my 14hr door-door time away at work. I know this is even a stretch for the IS, at least at the heat output I'll need, but I think it was the best - or only - choice out there that would fit my criteria. I was also hoping the freestander will put ore radiant heat in the room than the insert, and be more functional for cooking and if the power goes out. It was more or less down to BK and Woodstock... I could probably have gone with the King if it could have horizontal vented out the back and up into a 6" lined fireplace chimney. But it can't. It was a real tough call between the Progress Hybrid and Ideal Steel, but I went for the better value and firebox size (and supposedly better air control) of the IS. I would surely have liked a PH and still think it is much pretty and would have matched my decor...

So the neat thing about the IS is the customize-able artwork and pain schemes. For those that think its tacky, you don't have to get any of it, just a plain black box is certainly an option! I really liked a lot of the artwork already out there, and decided to use some existing artwork plus my own for the side medallions. I ordered the works, with ash pan, soapstone lining, and all the artwork options. I decided to go with an outdoors / mountain theme. When I was younger I lived near the Adirondack Mountains and I still travel back there whenever I can to hike the High Peaks and paddle in the lakes and streams. And not to leave out the NH folks either, I've spent a lot of time in the Whites. With the help of someone on the Adirondack Mountain Forums I came up with an image of a canoe on a mountain lake and then had Woodstock tweak it to something that looks good and the machine can handle. I decided on maple leaf andirons, a compass center trivet and loon side trivets.



I was pretty happy with the outcome, and it ties in my outdoors / hiking /paddling together nicely. I don't like lots of different colors so I went with a traditional black stove with just a bit of copper trim. After seeing another member here with that I really liked it. So I finalized the order on the last day of the sale back in Spring.


At ABF freight in Columbus Ohio


In the garage

I brought the IS home on my truck and would have liked the assistance of the loader on my old JD but the clutch is all seized up on it and after sitting around I can't even get it to start. That's a whole different topic. Anyhow best I could do by myself was build up a 'dock' of pallets up to the height of the truck and walk the stove off the back of the truck onto the pallets. I also stripped all the weight off it I could easily, and brought the pieces inside.

I made a simple brick hearth extension in front of the fireplace. Took me a while to hunt down appropriate bricks so I could meet the R-value requirement with one layer and not having to buy any extra durock or those kinds of things. The concrete-brick pavers they sell at Lowes now-a-days are thinner than the traditional brick. I hadn't ever done masonry work before but figured I'd give it a try. This install is somewhat temporary so I wasn't too worried about the hearth as long as it worked. I do plan on moving at some point in the future, and hope to take the stove with me (yank out this temporary hearth extension and reinstall the insert). Still finishing up trimming the hearth with some stained wood trim around the bricks.

To help me move the stove in by myself, I would employ a tactic I used on my last install - a metal deck garden cart. However the Harbor Freight ones I bought before did not hold up well at all despite the 1,000 lb rating. More like 1,000 lb rating for .5 seconds before the assembly crushes. So I did some shopping and found at TSC they had a heavy duty one with larger deck, 1200 lb rating, and much more robust and better construction. It also happened to be on clearance, and with a 10% off coupon it wasn't much more than the crappy HF ones.


TSC 1,200 lb cart

I had to assemble it, and after learning my lesson with the HF cart I didn't take any chances and reinforced the deck with a couple of 2x4's right over top of where the supports connect between the axles and deck. I also layered 1.5" foam board scraps around the rest of the deck to give a flush and scratch free surface to put the stove on.

The big move was on Thanksgiving day. I cleared a path and prepared every trick in the book I had to help me move this beast in by myself. Ever since I moved out of town I am a good hour away from the few friends I had around the city so getting someone to help me with a 2hr round trip isn't that easy and I don't like to inconvenience someone if I can do it myself. You'd think after living out here now for 7 years I'd know some people but I really don't. Anyhow...


Getting the IS onto the cart

The extra size (height) of the cart did make it a little difficult to tip the stove onto. This was pretty easy with my Shelburne and HF cart, but with the IS I had to lift the far legs up and work it onto the cart - which is hard to do standing on the inches of space of pallet around the stove! But I got it on there. The screw heads on the back of the stove made it a bit hard to get into place - they wanted to bite the 2x4's and foam board.


Getting through front door part I

I remember with my Shelburne move that even the small doorway transition was hard to pull the stove up and over so I built up the porch with a couple pallets and some 2x4's to the height of the door transition and used some ramps. That eased up the angle too, making it a bit safer for me managing the 500 lbs of moving weight.


Getting through front door part II


Getting through front door part III

Looks like I am at my pic limit for this post, will continue later...
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In the living room

There was only one other transition and that was into the living room. I cut that in half with the use of the same pallet and some scrap 2x4s. The big wheels handled a few inches of drop just fine.


Ready to go onto hearth

I tipped the stove off near the hearth, and then walked it onto it. The Jotul is there on the right, will take it out on the cart once the IS is in place.


Walking onto hearth

Awkward looking pic lol, just lifting the stove and walking into place. Oh and showing off my not very large but still tough arms.


Walking onto hearth part II


Finally in position

I took video of the move, in case the stove crashed through the porch floor or something at least I'd have a funny video clip. Thankfully nothing terrible happened. I'm to lazy to edit the video right now so those were just some clips from the video.


Taking the good ol' Jotul Rockland out


Ready to put all the pieces back on

Here are all the pieces removed to lighten up the stove and make it easier for me to handle, plus pieces that came separate anyhow. Also had the firebrick out of the stove bottom but they didn't make the pic.


Stove assembled

Got it all assembled except for the venting. It's a bit dusty, sorry. Have to run to the store to get a tee and hook it up today. Action pics soon... Hopefully light-off for burn-in fire today. ​

 

Wow, what a job doing it by yourself...

 

Nice work! Love the art...

 

I like it

 

Looking good T.

 

My 13NC at 325lbs. took some "creative maneuvering" to get it into my house and onto my hearth. At 620lbs. for the IS....................wow!!

 

Definitely had to do a lot of work, to do the work.
Gooder job.

 

Amazing, stove and installation!

 

Nice job. Not much comparison between the PH air control and IS air control (the IS control is a great system - tip it back over and check it out!) Not much chance of hurting the IS legs while horsing it around, either. Hope you enjoy learning it!

 

Thanks everyone for the comments! Yeah it did take a lot of planning and some various things to help me. Luckily I had everything I needed except the cart, and it's useful to have around anyhow. Wanted to show some better pics of the finished product...

Ideal Steel and Pepper... she's scouting out a new favorite spot to soak up some heat!




Loon side burners and compass center burner

Those aren't the Loons I signed up for, but close enough. They had 2 different loon designs and I picked the side profile (see very first pic in post) and what I got was the shot from the rear ones. No biggie. And to add some pop to em I am thinking about cutting a circle of sheet metal to go underneath the burners and paint it copper... that way it will shine through the background. Also I thought the compass would have cutouts where the black would show through, but its double layered and painted all as one piece. Wish the under layer was black so it wasn't just one big piece of copper. I was thinking about grinding the welds and separating them but after seeing how they were welded together I think it will be too much fuss. It looks fine I think still.

We have Ignition in 3... 2... 1...

First burn-in fire

I don't have the trim finished on the hearth yet... those 1x4 boards are just cut to size and set there. Will run the router over the edges and stain it maybe tomorrow.


Close up of the maple leaf andirons

So far so good. I did 2 small fires this afternoon and let it go out. A bigger one started an hour ago and I'll let it slowly die overnight. Then tomorrow I'll go for the first cat burn and hopefully finish the curing. Was a bit worried about draft since it was in the 50's and foggy drizzle out, but no problems at all and no smoke spillage on the small fires. Only thing I wish I could do better was the hearth. If this was going to be my permanent house I'd have done a better job and tried to tie it in with the look of the massive hearth already there. Would have made it perhaps the same width as the existing hearth, instead of just barely meeting minimum spec. But this thing really sticks out into the room a ways so I went with the bare minimum. For less than $50 my hearth is good enough for me though. I still have to clean up things and re-organize the room. Have to move the giant 8' long fish tank in the background to a different wall, and see if I can slide a big sectional around where the tank currently is.​

 

Well I did try to use best lifting techniques I could and keep a proper arch in my lower back and upright, but I was pretty sore that night! And if that wasn't enough abuse to the bod - as soon as I had it set on the hearth I went out for a 12 mile run. That was Thanksgiving day and had to burn off some calories in preparation!

Well I had the stove stripped down pretty good, maybe around 500 lbs? Even still the IS stripped down is heaver than other stoves I've moved before they were stripped down! Hopefully all that mass will help keep things warm on my long burns for 14hr workdays.

Time to update the stove in my sig... don't get to do that very often!