Many consumers possess the skills to install a stove or insert but the more important question is should you. Probably the best answer today is no - for several reasons.
- We are told that virtually all insurance companies today want to see evidence of professional installation before they will issue or renew a policy. Check with your insurance agent first if you are planning to self-install.
- Even excellent carpentry and mechanical skills are not a substitute for experience and understanding the nuanced verbiage in codes and installation manuals. It can be easy to make an installation error and that can be dangerous.
- If you plan to go ahead with a self-install, you'll need to contact 'the authority having jurisdiction' (usually your local building official), and obtain any permits lawfully required for the installation. Again, we remind you to notify your insurance carrier.
Here are several sites that have no sales objective and are well regarded by stove pros in the industry.
Woodheat.org is run by John Gulland, a Canadian wood heat expert and researcher. It is a non-commercial site dedicated to helping you learn to burn wood better. It's content rich and well worth spending time on.
Hearth.com is the most visited portal for hearth users and pros trading comments and feedback on many issues from buying suggestions, experiences, and more. Most hearth dealers and manufacturers support this site through advertising.
Bio-Bricks are compressed biomass (sawdust primarily) made into blocks and sold by many hardware stores, big box, and some stove shops. Before you even consider buying them, check with the manufacturer of your stove appliance. The majority of brands we know will VOID WARRANTY if Bio-Bricks are used. Why?
Stoves are tested by safety testing labs to specific test standards to determine safe distances to combustibles among other things. Cord wood (the stuff that's stacked in the backyard) may have irregular shapes and varying degrees of moisture content but the typical moisture content of really well-seasoned wood is about 20%. Bio-Bricks are kiln dried to much lower moisture content. When exposed to the high temperatures inside a firebox, the solid Bio-Bricks can disintegrate and expose more surface area of dry-hot particles leading to lots of combustible gas emissions and potentially high temperatures that could exceed the limits the appliance was safety tested to. Some manufacturers do allow Bio-Brick use so check first.