How to Install a Wood Stove

A wood stove can be a nice addition to any home especially if no fireplace is in place. This is also ideal for small homes because of its size. But more importantly, a wood stove can provide additional heat to your house as a supplement to your existing heating system.

One of the most important steps that you need to take before even buying a wood stove is to determine what type to use. Figure out if you’re going to use it for your fireplace or you’re going to have a freestanding one for a specific room in your house. Various materials are available today but the most commonly used is the cast iron wood stove.

Before installing a wood stove in your home, always check the manufacturer’s instructions and the safety guidelines in your locality. By using this additional heating appliance, you are bound by your area’s building codes. So any homeowner just don’t go buy this stove and install it right away in his residence because certain rules have to be followed such the clearance or distance from the wall, the need for a chimney where the smoke should be directed and the flooring pad on which the wood stove should sit.

Location is crucial. A corner area is ideal because of its slanted sides. Clearance is another thing. A wood stove needs to be placed 36 inches away from a combustible wall that is not well protected. But the clearance can be reduced to 12 inches as long as your wall is non-combustible, is well ventilated and well protected.

Once you have decided on the type of stove and its location in your house, it’s time to start setting it up. Prepare a fire pad on where to position your assembled stove. The first part to install then is the chimney pipe and this component has to be straight. Stove pipes come in different types as well such as the double-wall steel type and the triple-wall pipe. What this means is that the main chimney pipe has double or triple protection which makes it safer to use. If you use the triple-wall, for instance, you can position your wood stove with only a 9-inch clearance from the wall.

If your house has a fireplace, you can simply connect the chimney pipe into the flue and metal panel. Make sure, though, to add a flashing and seal for this. A 6-inch pipe is normally used to pass through the flue.

Note that the flue pipe of your wood stove should be higher than the other pipes and vents that extend out of your home’s roof. For the chimney, it has to be at least three feet taller than the roof and two feet higher than all other combustion pipes within a radius of 10 feet.

To ensure the safety of your home and your wood stove, it’s essential that your heating appliance has a door or shutter to cover the fire chamber opening. And other than the chimney pipe, other components it should have are a combustion air inlet, a hearth extension.