January 06, 2008
the dry conflagration of seasoned elm
1/6/08
I'm putting together a blog of pictures for our extended family - y'know, the Christmas and holiday crazypantsing - but LFMD asked what secret present I'd given to Tessa. In short, it was a wood stove for our farmhouse that I installed myself:
.jpg)
disregard mess at right
Two months of research went into this project, and I think I can safely say I know more about R-values, firebox capacity, hardwood burning rates and flue technology than anyone else with a music and psychology degree from the University of North Carolina. A quick breakdown of what I had to do:
- find the right woodburning stove that was super-efficient yet still looked like it belonged at a farm
- calculate precise dimensions and clearances so that the stovepipe could go straight up through the living room, through the bedroom upstairs and through the attic and roof without, you know, going through wires or a hot water pipe
- build a hearth out of Micore™, aluminum sheets and brick (which required learning basic masonry)
- saw holes through the floors and ceilings (unbelievably hard)
- make everything to code by using double-wall stovepipe and mirror-finish insulated pipe
.jpg)
marking location and clearances with tape
...and a lot of other nickel-and-dime stuff that, like most other projects, adds a week to your timeframe just by being annoying. The hardest thing, by far, was getting the stove itself out of our car and into the house. We were having an ice storm, and I was doing it by myself, and that motherscratcher was so fuckin' heavy that it flattened the tires on my dolly. Cast iron is serious bidness, yo.
.jpg)
before mortaring
Because I'm relentlessly persnickety and have too much OCD because I'm on strike, I wanted to use antique bricks for the hearth. I found a few down in the foundation of our house from the late 1800s, and then used some others I found locally, like the Arrow Bricks (from the long-defunct brickmaker in the Hudson Valley). I though the pavers with flying ducks on them were cool, and also the "McManigal 1892". I mean, why make a complicated project easier when you can make it so much more complicated?
Tessa's reaction? Delayed joy, I would call it. When she first saw it, she was freaked out, because it was a huge change in our house that we hadn't discussed - also, because I was waiting on chimney flashing, it didn't work yet. But the next day, the pros came over to install the chimney cap, and we were off to the races. My whole family spent most of the holidays in front of it, and when the weather flirted with the minus-teens a few days ago, it saved our ass.
One thing Tessa and I have always wanted was a fireplace - neither of us have lived in a place with a working fire since we were kids. Real fireplaces are somewhat insane, with a heat efficiency that can be as low as 5%. These new woodstoves are in the 77% efficiency range, and the big window gives you all the cracklin' you can stare at for hours. After all this labor, I truly do just want to make sweet, sweet love to it all night long.
.jpg)
cleaning up during Xmas
NICE. I want.
That being said, I can understand why Tessa was a bit freaked at first. I myself am very controlling about our house interior and its contents.
Good work though, Ian. That's a cozy scene in the last pic!
WOW!!! Tell Tessa I'm jealous. One of the few things I wanted when we were buying a house was a fireplace, but with DCs crazy housing market 6 years ago I didn't get much of what I'd wanted. Plus, I've been asking my husband to hang a mirror for months and it still isnt' done!!! I know, I know, I should just do it myself, but it's really heavy AND I'm short. :)
My friend, you truly are A Renaissance Man. I love everything about your gift, especially the antique bricks.
That's hot.
That is beautiful! I dig the antique bricks, too.
Much warmer than the Yule Log on channel 11.
How do you baby-proof something like that? Asbestos bumpers on the sides?
Cozies for yer toe-sies. Brings me back to days of yore (chopping wood, stacking wood, hauling coal, dumping ashes, playing with fire...)
Name that sucker. All good woodstoves (like 1st cars) have got names. We had 'Woodsy Stove' and 'Jimmy Crack Coal'.
Snap, crackle, and pop! Good think Santa's so elastic and far-proof.
nothing about the early days of the primaries???
GFWD- We got the Hearth Gate from KidCo:
http://www.kidco.com/main.taf?erube_fh=kidco&kidco.submit.gateDetails=1
Amazing! Seriously, I am so impressed that you can do that sort of thing. And nothing beats a fire on a freezing night.
Off topic, but can I just say "Hooray for public school!" Two of my darlings are back in class, and all seems right with the world.
Happy New Year everyone. I have high hopes for 2008!!
you could have just burned all the christmas wrapping paper in the middle of the room with some hardy christmas prayers as the base and some good old christmas wrap cardbord brown(a bit like a wood colour)tubeing as a flue.....it would work if you really liked fire and if you were prepared to have a hole in your roof......and maybe die... maybe next year.....please feel free to contact me for any futher projects..happy new year
you know i'm joking...that idea would never work....cardboard burns like hell it could never ever be fluent in flue stylie
Pretty f'ing impressive, dude.
Just stopping by again to admire your gift. I can't believe that you did all of that work yourself. The research, the sawing through floors and ceilings, . . . wow. I am ashamed to say that I have not put that much work into a gift for anyone, ever. Tell me the name of that med you are on again? Gotta get me some! Only kidding. It is not the meds, it is the thoughtful person behind the gifts.
By the way, the Ladies at the Insurance Job are all aswoon over you and this stove. Needless to say, none of their husbands installed a woodstove with antique bricks.
One of my co-workers said, "Isn't this the guy who installed that lovely porch swing in California for his wife???" "Yes, same guy" I said. You are a Legend here.
My favorite comment heard at the Insurance Job today: "My ex-husband wouldn't even take out the God-damn garbage on trash night, and this guy is installing a woodstove for his wife. That guy Ian is what I call A CATCH!"