Stairs wrapping around an internal fireplace

mattjsparacio · January 05, 2013, 11:53:35 AM

Hello,

I have been following this website for a year and this is my first post.

I was using sketch-up and wanted to have an internal masonry stove with the steps wrapping around three sides. I know that there are clearance issues with a two inch gap required between the masonry and any combustable materials. Does anyone have a suggestion on how the stairs might be possible. I was thinking of building the fireplace out of brick, then using metal studs to give me an air space, and then using cement board with a thin stone veneer to give me the finished look.

Thanks for any advice.

FutureBumpkin · January 05, 2013, 02:24:30 PM

I have no advice, but can't wait to see how this evolves. That's a really cute sketch! Me likey.

January 05, 2013, 02:30:53 PM

Thanks,
Hoping to start the build this summer by getting the septic and well in place. Depending on the financials, possibly getting the slab ready.

Redoverfarm · January 05, 2013, 04:17:06 PM

Little confused with your post. Not sure whether you are building a flue for a fireplace or free standing stove. If you are constructing a mason flue then you will need a fireproof liner which can be surrounded by brick or flue block. Keep in mind the weight on your floor system. Generally most mason flues are footered at grade and rise up through the floor and continue through the roof.

There are clearences even on mason built fireplaces but also there are exceptions. If there is 12" of mason material between your combustionable material and your fire chase the framing it is allowed with out clearences.

Here is some guide lines regarding. Particular to R1001.15 Chimney clearances

http://www.rumford.com/code/clearances.html#clearance

flyingvan · January 05, 2013, 04:24:59 PM

ANy particular reason it has to actually attach to the masonry? Couldn't you leave a gap and make it self supporting? I'm not sure if I'd combine the slight flexes stairs usually take with the heat and cool cycles of chimneys, though I'm sure it could be engineered

January 05, 2013, 04:59:23 PM

Thanks for the link. I plan on constructing a masonry flue. The entire chimney will be on its own footing. The dimensions for the chimney are 2'8" deep by 3' 8" wide.

I had planned to have the stairs free standing but didn't want a large gap between the stairs and the chimney.

JRR · January 05, 2013, 07:48:43 PM

You could use steel steps, each step stand-alone and cantilevered out of the re-inforced masonry surround. The hand rail could be exotic also. If the chimney were round .....

PEG688 · January 05, 2013, 10:56:37 PM

Install a gas fired unit , propane or Natural gas.

Finding a wood burning unit that would link into you fireplace would be tough I think. Do you have any links to wood fired stoves that look like the one you show in your sketch-up drawing?

Maybe they make them, and they just aren't popular in this (my) area.

mattjsparacio · January 06, 2013, 12:26:20 PM

Below is a link to a pdf that describes what I want to do. The stove, which needs to be wood burning, will draw air from the outside. It is built like a fireplace but has a door. The flue will have baffles to allow the masonry to absorb as much heat as possible. The fires made need to be hot and burned for only a couple of hours. The heat absorbed is supposed to heat your house for 2-3 days. In order to work at its best, the masonry stove (Russian Fireplace) needs to be on the interior of the building. Otherwise you are just heating up the exterior. They have been building these for years in Europe.

http://www.dnr.mo.gov/pubs/pub781.pdf

January 06, 2013, 01:01:40 PM

What a beautiful and practical idea! I am not a builder but if the mass was large enough would there not be too much concern about wood being in contact with the stone face? I've seen these in the NL with beds built into the walls on the left and right sides.

I've seen similar things in Scandinavia; Kachelofen, which are masonry built but covered in ceramic tiles, sometimes built into intersecting corners of several rooms. I think you'd need a skilled mason and preferably one who has built them before. That might be a challenge in itself; finding an experienced mason. Pretty and functional. Good luck.

mattjsparacio · January 06, 2013, 01:18:31 PM

I thought about the round chimney also. I thought that might be out of my league when it came to masonry skills. One problem I am running into is that I'm planning on going with the 2 story universal plans and the stairs for the attic are above the stairs that go from the first floor to the second floor. The chimney gets much smaller after the first floor, only the flue and the stone surround. Maybe I could do the steel cantilevered all the way to the attic. I'll have to look into that and the pricing.

Matt

Redoverfarm · January 06, 2013, 03:32:20 PM

For occassional use of the attic I really couldn't justify a permanent set of stairs. I would probably just go with a set of pull down stairs tucked away in a hallway or closet. The stairs are a big space consumption.

mattjsparacio · January 06, 2013, 03:48:48 PM

because we are going with slab on grade for passive solar design, we wanted to use part of the attic for a play room. In our current home, our kids toys are in a finished basement. We like the option of keeping the toys out of the living room as much as possible. You don't know how many times I've ended up with a figurine embedded in my rear end. In one of the universal builds someone used engineered roof trusses that were built for an attic with a shed dormer for the stairs.

Redoverfarm · January 06, 2013, 04:57:46 PM

Quote from: mattjsparacio on January 06, 2013, 03:48:48 PM
because we are going with slab on grade for passive solar design, we wanted to use part of the attic for a play room. In our current home, our kids toys are in a finished basement. We like the option of keeping the toys out of the living room as much as possible. You don't know how many times I've ended up with a figurine embedded in my rear end. In one of the universal builds someone used engineered roof trusses that were built for an attic with a shed dormer for the stairs.

So your build will be a 2-1/2 story? Hadn't seen that post. I would imagine that there was probably a rather steep pitch on the roof to give the needed heigth.

January 06, 2013, 05:58:13 PM

Your fireplace looks just like out BisNova, which we are very happy with

mattjsparacio · January 06, 2013, 08:15:41 PM

So people have a better idea of what i had in mind and because pictures can show what i mean to say better then my words can, I am posting the sketch-up plans that I have so far. The exterior plans are still in progress. Sorry. I know that I don't have the chimney coming through the roof yet and I know that I haven't drawn supports for my porch roof.

First floor. The main area is based on the 2 story Universal and the back portion will be a shed roof. There is a utility room, pantry, half bath, and mud room on the back section.

This is the second floor. It has 4 bedrooms and 2 baths.

South side of the house with mountain views.

North side of the house. Shows the shed roof for the stair access. The chimney will exit through the shed roof near the ridge.