Fire safety – Ducting wood stove heat upstairs?
Hi,
I want to move heat from above a wood stove on the first floor to the center hallway on the second floor, above. I understand just putting an open register above the wood stove probably isn’t safe or legal, in terms of fire safety. So I want to figure out what I can do that is safe, legal, and effective.
The building configuration is such that directly above the wood stove is an attic space. Very near that point in the attic is a wall in the second floor hallway I want to move heated air from the wood stove into. I’m wondering what HVAC gear exists that would use a blower to pull heat from a ceiling register above the wood stove and duct it into a wall register down low in the second floor hallway, AND be legal as a fire and smoke barrier if either became present. Some sort of fusible link/damper in the register above the wood stove, perhaps?
-John
Replies
JohnPJackson wrote:
Hi,
I want to move heat from above a wood stove on the first floor to the center hallway on the second floor, above. I understand just putting an open register above the wood stove probably isn't safe or legal, in terms of fire safety. So I want to figure out what I can do that is safe, legal, and effective.
The building configuration is such that directly above the wood stove is an attic space. Very near that point in the attic is a wall in the second floor hallway I want to move heated air from the wood stove into. I'm wondering what HVAC gear exists that would use a blower to pull heat from a ceiling register above the wood stove and duct it into a wall register down low in the second floor hallway, AND be legal as a fire and smoke barrier if either became present. Some sort of fusible link/damper in the register above the wood stove, perhaps?
-John
john,
while we lived for years in houses originally set up with gravity heat, your idea of a fusible link register is smart. Couple that with smoke alarms at appropriate locations.
I have never dealt with this company.
http://www.holyoake.com/product-details/IBD-H_item.html?ref_cat_id=6-Fire-Protection
Re: Fire safety - Ducting wood stove heat upstairs?
calvin wrote:
JohnPJackson wrote:
Hi,
I want to move heat from above a wood stove on the first floor to the center hallway on the second floor, above. I understand just putting an open register above the wood stove probably isn't safe or legal, in terms of fire safety. So I want to figure out what I can do that is safe, legal, and effective.
The building configuration is such that directly above the wood stove is an attic space. Very near that point in the attic is a wall in the second floor hallway I want to move heated air from the wood stove into. I'm wondering what HVAC gear exists that would use a blower to pull heat from a ceiling register above the wood stove and duct it into a wall register down low in the second floor hallway, AND be legal as a fire and smoke barrier if either became present. Some sort of fusible link/damper in the register above the wood stove, perhaps?
-John
john,
while we lived for years in houses originally set up with gravity heat, your idea of a fusible link register is smart. Couple that with smoke alarms at appropriate locations.
I have never dealt with this company.
http://www.holyoake.com/product-details/IBD-H_item.html?ref_cat_id=6-Fire-Protection
Thanks for the info, Calvin! :)
calvin wrote:
JohnPJackson wrote:
Hi,
I want to move heat from above a wood stove on the first floor to the center hallway on the second floor, above. I understand just putting an open register above the wood stove probably isn't safe or legal, in terms of fire safety. So I want to figure out what I can do that is safe, legal, and effective.
The building configuration is such that directly above the wood stove is an attic space. Very near that point in the attic is a wall in the second floor hallway I want to move heated air from the wood stove into. I'm wondering what HVAC gear exists that would use a blower to pull heat from a ceiling register above the wood stove and duct it into a wall register down low in the second floor hallway, AND be legal as a fire and smoke barrier if either became present. Some sort of fusible link/damper in the register above the wood stove, perhaps?
-John
john,
while we lived for years in houses originally set up with gravity heat, your idea of a fusible link register is smart. Couple that with smoke alarms at appropriate locations.
I have never dealt with this company.
http://www.holyoake.com/product-details/IBD-H_item.html?ref_cat_id=6-Fire-Protection
John
You're welcome.
and, even tho I can delete spam here I have to resort to the "quote" button to make the first reply to a thread.
Finehombuilding maybe. But you sure as hell cant say fineforumbuilding.......
I'm getting closer to proceeding! )
I'm getting closer to going ahead with this project, to where I'm ready to buy a fire damper type HVAC device/grille to use in the ducting path between a point in the ceiling centered directly above the wood stove, to a register in a wall in a room upstairs above. The length of the air path from one end of the duct to the other will be somewhere between 24"-36".
Logically, if I'm trying to safeguard against the movement of a fire in the room with the wood stove in it to the room/floor above, I would think that using a fire damper device in the ceiling register right above the wood stove itself would be where I would want such a device to be positioned, to hold a fire's progress back as close to its origination point as possible.
But, thinking ahead, I should determine the highest temperature I might expect to occur at the ceiling level where the damper would be installed and having surrounding heated air drawn in through - in a non-fire situation. From what I'm seeing in specs, the temperature at which these types of fire dampers activate is 165 degrees fahrenheit.
Other than me going and firing up the woodstove, and getting it going as hot as possible, then directly measuring the temperature in the desired place on the ceiling above it, does anyone here want to guess at, or do you actually know, how hot it might ever get at the ceiling above an average sized woodstove in a 12' x 12' room?
I want to avoid having normal heat activate the damper. That would be a major kill joy...
The alternative would be to locate the damper at the opposite end of the air path, where the heated air is exiting into the room on the second floor, above. I just don't like the idea that doing it that way would give a fire access further upward past the boundry of the ceiling in the same room it's theoretically originating in. The duct/damper should still hold it in, but it's still less optimal. At least to my novice experience with considering these things.
-John
Hey There.
Wondering if you did this and your evaluation of its success….
Thanks!
Jamie
I put in a 12x12 vent in the ceiling of our basement / floor of the main, with an inline duct fan. We have a pellet stove and I wanted more heat upstairs. Here the code is 10' away from heating appliance that uses flame / wood. Mine is 16' away and is pretty effective. The heat on the ceiling gets pushed upstairs in the winter.