Part J: Skirting distance from stove

[pmx_super]

Is there any definitive interpretation of Part J regarding the proximity of skirting on the front of a chimney breast to a wood burning stove? I did my research, and concluded from section 2.18 and associated Diagram 21 that there was no minimum, with skirting shown "less than 200mm". My HETAS installer has turned up and told me the skirting needs to be cut back clear of the hearth.

Left or right? (Excuse the carrot and mince pie)

 

[big-all]

he is the man you need to please as he signs it off
he may compromise a bit but its his requirement you need to comply with

 

[foxhole]

Will the stove have legs? My installer was happy with my skirting which runs right across behind my stove because it sits below the main body ( and therefore heat from stove )

 

[pmx_super]

Will the stove have legs? My installer was happy with my skirting which runs right across behind my stove because it sits below the main body ( and therefore heat from stove )

Yes but the skirting is higher than the legs. I spoke to the stove manufacturer and they said pretty much the same as big-all, i.e. it's up to the installer. I spoke to the boss and he's come up with 150mm either side of the stove instead of back to the hearth. No idea where he got that from but I guess I'll have to roll with it.

 

[foxhole]

Must be tiny legs .

 

[big-all]

my opinion and its only an opinion is the skirting is fine where it is for 3 reasons
only the end grain will be the closest, heat rises much faster than it goes sideways and the warmed air rises causing an airflow further drawing heat away
my suggestion remove the skirting get it passed and during a redecoration just afterwords get a bit forgetful as to what he said as no one will ever come and check as its "nothing goes wrong no one cares " situation

 

[pmx_super]

Must be tiny legs .

Tiny stove, and there's only about 10mm in it.

 

[pmx_super]

my opinion and its only an opinion is the skirting is fine where it is for 3 reasons
only the end grain will be the closest, heat rises much faster than it goes sideways and the warmed air rises causing an airflow further drawing heat away
my suggestion remove the skirting get it passed and during a redecoration just afterwords get a bit forgetful as to what he said as no one will ever come and check as its "nothing goes wrong no one cares " situation

I find the suggestion that painted MDF skirting could ignite due to heat transference to be completely absurd, and yet the young guy who did the installation seemed utterly convinced that it was a genuine risk. The painful bit personally is that I fitted the skirting because I got impatient waiting, even though I knew there was a risk this would happen.

 

[clifford1]

The skirting will be heated by radiant, not convected, heat,
If the stove is set back in the alcove then a straight line from the heat source will cross the corner edge of the wall and barely touch the skirting at all. I'd stop the skirting an inch from the corner anyway, with a bevelled edge, simply because it looks better.

The skirting I presume will be white, not black, so will absorb much less radiant heat in any case. I'd be much more worried about the black tiles underneath the stove, which appear to be very thin and sit directly on the floor - wood?

 

[big-all]

I find the suggestion that painted MDF skirting could ignite due to heat transference to be completely absurd, and yet the young guy who did the installation seemed utterly convinced that it was a genuine risk. The painful bit personally is that I fitted the skirting because I got impatient waiting, even though I knew there was a risk this would happen.

its definitely 100% not going to ignite or get anywhere near hot to the touch, the only thing i would put it down to happening is shrinkage causing paint to crack due to a bit to quite a bit more expansion and contraction thats assuming its at least 150mm from a highly heated surface not just legs
i have a 4kw wood burner in my shed old metal radiators about 3 or 4 inches away and the wall about another 12mm away will get very warm but that's mid stove above the wood burning area
but at the base its fairly cool as the dropped kindleing will testify

only my opinion though

 

[pmx_super]

I'd stop the skirting an inch from the corner anyway, with a bevelled edge, simply because it looks better.

Perhaps if someone redecorates in the future, unaware of the HETAS installer's stipulation, they may well do that.

I'd be much more worried about the black tiles underneath the stove, which appear to be very thin and sit directly on the floor - wood?

They're green! Argh, I knew they'd look black. On the other hand I'm delighted you thought they were thin and set on the wood. I meticulously planned the levels to make they flush with my new wooden floor (they're actually sat on an unfathomably thick concrete slab).

 

[foxhole]

Tiny stove, and there's only about 10mm in it.

That look fine to me.

 

[pmx_super]

That look fine to me.

Me too

 

[pmx_super]

For others arriving with the same question, I have learned that it is section 2.28 of Part J that he was observing, whereby combustible material placed on or beside a constructional hearth should not extend [snip] closer than 150mm measured horizontally to the appliance.

I can however confirm that even with the stove lit, the spot where the skirting once was is no warmer to the touch than anywhere else on the wall, so the change was indeed utterly pointless.