Barell stove - safe wall

[955point9cummins]

I am sure this question has been asked here before and I hate to be that guy that fails to use search before asking a question but I ran into a couple snags trying to use search from my phone on both the website forum and from tapatalk. So, please accept my apologies and go easy on me to that respect. Thanks!

Now onto the question. Like many others I have been needing to find a good way to heat my garage. I even have my buddy pitching in half the cash and labor to do the project which is awesome. He uses the garage as much or more than I do so we both benefit here. We were going to install a natural gas garage heater at a cost of roughly a grand. We discussed it and decided that a wood stove would suit us just fine and we don't really need a gas unit for since the garage does spend most of the time unused.

Looking at wood stoves I found them ranging in price from a hundred bucks into the thousands. The I discovered the gem that is the barell stove kit. I am sold. After the reviews I have read and videos I have watched this is the way I want to go.

I know how to safely vent the stove, so that is not an issue. The issue I have is the distance requirements around the stove. Being such a large unit I would like to place it as close to a wall as possible to maximize garage space. I know if I put it too close I'll really maximize my yard space and minimize my garage to a pile of ash and melted dreams.

With that in mind I am want to build a hearth so that I can put it against the wall. My garage is currently unfinished and uninsulated. I will eventually be insulating and covering the walls with peg board. I have read that in order to put a wood burner right up against a wall either a stone barrier or a tile wall is the way to go. I can do a tile wall very cheaply since I don't care what it looks like.

So here is the question. Is it safe to insulate the wall with faced fiberglass insulation, then cover that with cement backer board and then apply ceramic tile with mortar, and then place the stove within a few inches of that?

 

[955point9cummins]

And my spelling is terrible. Please read "barell" as "barrel" in my previous post. Lol

 

[Gerald O]

So here is the question. Is it safe to insulate the wall with faced fiberglass insulation, then cover that with cement backer board and then apply ceramic tile with mortar, and then place the stove within a few inches of that?

That would be 'safer-er' than an open wall. But no one can tell you that it is completely safe. Too many uncontrolled factors. There is no way to predict how hot that barrel stove is going to get. The stove itself is a fire hazard in a garage. Tending the stove might release sparks or hot coals when you open it to put more wood in. Flammable materials might be placed near it or on it in a moment of carelessness.

Don't expect that it will be safe even if someone here voices an opinion that it is.

 

[CNGsaves]

Never seen a barrel stove a few inches from wall . . . you're just asking for trouble !!

 

[ripperd]

Hanging gas heater will maximize floorspace, and be instant on and off. Just saying. Overall cost doesn't sound like it will be that different.

 

[theoldwizard1]

The issue I have is the distance requirements around the stove. Being such a large unit I would like to place it as close to a wall as possible to maximize garage space.

There are building codes that define the minimum distance to a combustible surface.

So here is the question. Is it safe to insulate the wall with faced fiberglass insulation, then cover that with cement backer board and then apply ceramic tile with mortar, and then place the stove within a few inches of that?

My Dad did almost exactly this, except he used 1/2 brick instead of tile.

The wall behind his stove was shared with a bedroom paneled in T&G knotty pine (50+ years old so it was VERY dry !). He removed some of the paneling so he could get to the backer board. It was so hot, you could not keep your hand on it even though he meet the standards for spacing.

The solution was really simple. Build a heat shield out of sheet metal and space it about 6" off the wall. You will be amazed at how much cooler the wall will be and the extra heat is actually going back into the room.

 

[teglovinvtec]

this thing heats well. if you fireproof the wall you would be ok. it may be a little big but its keeps my shop warm.

 

[teglovinvtec]

this started as a 275 gal fuel oil tank. used a barrel stove kit for door and flue collar. ran sprinkler pipe through stove and mounted a moble home furnace fan behind it on a dimmer. heats my 24x31 shop 17 ft high at 70 on a 0-10 degree day at 70.

 

[jkwilson]

The solution was really simple. Build a heat shield out of sheet metal and space it about 6" off the wall. You will be amazed at how much cooler the wall will be and the extra heat is actually going back into the room.

Similar to what I did at my old place. I stacked cinder blocks I had on hand with construction adhesive against the wall and faced them on the stove side with a few scrap speed limit signs. I put a small fan on top of the short block wall to help circulate the heat.

Semi-humorous side note: My neighbor at the time had a 1/2 lab mutt named Belle who was a great dog. When she smelled wood smoke from my stove, she would come and whine at the door of my shop to be let in. She'd lay all day on the rug near the stove, sometimes steaming for a while when she was wet. When her owner dropped in to visit, she'd lay still but her tail would thump the floor and she'd open her eyes and watch him. Sometime late in the day she'd hear her owners call her for food, and she'd come to life and ask to be let out.

 

[Jagmandave]

There's no question you could make something. I have a friend with a 30X50 shop that he heats with a double barrel stove - but - it's difficult to regulate the temp, it warms up quickly enough (he has a furnace blower mounted behind it) but then he often finds himself opening a door to let some cool air in......

Point being, a gas heater mounted up off the floor takes no work room, heats the space efficiently and relatively cheaply, and is no effort to use - put it on a thermostat and add an on/off switch and you're done. Heating the shop is as easy as throwing the switch, no cutting, splitting, hauling and storing wood - you just go out to the shop and get to do what you went out there to do.

And, when you sell the shop/property it's an easy close especially if you pull a permit and do it correctly.

I suppose if you have a big ol barn sized shop it might be different, but for a normal shop I say go with "easy".

 

[air8]

I'll post pics later, but do you have the option to place a small building outside with the stove in it? Then circulate the air into and out of the garage. We just completed a version of this setup and it is working pretty dang good. It is a 22'x20' Un-insulated garage, walls do have sheetrock. Two walk thru doors, three windows, one 8'x7' drive thru door.

The coldest day so far, winter just beginning in our area, has been 17° for the high. We were able to get the garage up to 54°. This was about two hours after starting the fire. Then had to let it burn down for the night.

That was a comfortable temp with long sleeves and no coat while working. I bet for sitting around a person would get cold pretty quick.

 

[955point9cummins]

OK, reading the thread here and more research made me decide a few things. Going to go with the double barrel stove. I haven't decided yet on using 55 gal drums or 30. My garage is roughly 24x32.

Either size I go with I'm going to turn the top barrel into a blow through heat exchanger using this wall pipes through it with 90 degree elbows on the end to direct the heat into the center of the garage instead of along the wall. The stave needs to be placed horizontal to the wall because of floor space options.

Along with the top air exchanger I may add one more stove pipe exchanger made from a metal bucket. I'll use a thermometer to check the temp of the stove pipe to see if this will give me any gains.

For fire protection I'll go with layers.

First layer is faced fiberglass insulation between the studs. Then sheet metal Nailed to the studs to cover that. Then a layer of cement board and tile.

Code for uncertified wood stoves (I know they still aren't epa approved) is 12 inches if there is a suitable fire barrier. The barrier I am building qualifies.

For a little extra protection I'll place another sheet of metal 6 inches between the wall and the stove.

As far as the option of building an addition for the heater, I'm going the wood stove route to save money over the cost of installing a GFA unit. Adding an addition would exceed the cost of installing both of the units since I live in a suburb and not out in the boonies (I sure wish I lived in the boonies with a big ole pole barn)

 

[theoldwizard1]

For fire protection I'll go with layers.

First layer is faced fiberglass insulation between the studs. Then sheet metal Nailed to the studs to cover that. Then a layer of cement board and tile.

DEAD AIR is a great thermal insulator. Sheet metal is a great thermal conductor especially when it is direct contact with other solid materials. The sheet metal will add no significant fire protection and will transfer all of the heat directly to the studs.

I said it before and I will say it again, YOU WANT A HEAT SHIELD. Sheet metal placed about 6" off the wall. Air on both side is what is keeping the wall cool.

OR

Mount your cement board and tile on metal studs that are 4-6" away from the existing wood stud/drywall finished wall. You need at least a 6" gap at the bottom, top and sides to allow air to circulate.

 

[RogueFab]

I didn't read every reply, but code here in Oregon follows national fire code pretty close. We need to have a sheet of metal or fireproof material (cement board/tile) spaced an inch off the wall with one inch gaps at the floor and any other walls. Just because a surface is fireproof doesn't mean the 2x4s under it are. The air gap allows natural convection to cool the wall. Distance to combustables WITH a barrier is 12 inches IIRC. Don't do 4 inches to sheetrock. It will burn the paper off and light the 2x4s behind it.