Stove Jack Material

[mtnrunner260]

Working on a DIY shelter soon. Have been thinking about the stove jack. I know I can get one from places like Bearpaw and I am sure there are others.
I have a army surplus store near by and was thinking they may have something?
Also I have a nomex flight suit that I could use some material from.
What about a coated/treated canvas?

My question is how fire resistant does the material need to be? Is it just from sparks coming out of the pipe or is it also from heat of the pipe? I will have about 5 feet of pipe between stove and fabric.

Thanks

 

[dotman]

For how inexpensive it is from BearPaw why not just get it and not worry to save a few $$?

 

[ndbwhunter]

Personally, I would spend the extra $20-30 and get something that is done right. Not saying that you couldn't get it right on your own, but I would rather trust in the experience of those that have proven themselves. I had the full length of my 7ft pipe red hot, and even that made me a little nervous.

If you can find the right material, then go for it, but I wouldn't experiment with different materials on my gear. The beauty of place like bearpaww is that they've done the testing for us

 

[jmden]

Most of these stovejack in lightweight tents are made of a silicone coated fiberglass material. The material is typically designed as welding blankets. The silicone withstands up to about 500F, the fiberglass much higher, but you'll be destroying the silicone that holds the fiberglass together and waterproofs the stovejack, so if your stovepipe is red hot, you are damaging the silicone. There's little trix here and there, but best advice is to not fire the stove too hot.

 

[Bubblehide]

I've made a few of them myself. Thin fiberglass and silicone. Yes, you need to worry about the stove pipe, as it can get very hot; hot enough to start a fire is something combustible is touching it, or even close enough to it for that matter. Give yourself at least a foot in each direction around it and you'll be fine. To make them, you should first determine if you need a round or oblong-ed hole. I make it oversize, and use 3-M blue tape on the outer edge of where I want the silicone; leaving a raw area of fiberglass for attachment to the tent material. I then place the fiberglass on a wide piece of wax paper, and spread the silicone on one side; you only need a thin coat. I build up the silicone around the hole for the stove pipe and tool it at an angle down towards the fiberglass, so any rain/water will run off when it is finished and installed. Knowing the high side and shaping that like a triangle that slopes down to the fiberglass can be helpful to divert water away. Just don't get carried away with silicone, as more often than not, less is more. I let that dry overnight, or longer, and repeat on the opposite side. It is also very possible to first attach the fiberglass to the tent fabric, and then silicone it, but you will have to deal with all the tent material. Lastly, if you want to keep the ends of the fiberglass from coming apart, before you cut it, run two strips of tape around the perimeter about 1/2 an inch apart and very thinly silicone the gap, let dry, turn over and repeat, and then cut it withing the silicone area.

 

[Hunt'nFish]

Aside from bearpaw, liteoutdoors sells stove jack sheet material for $18-25 depending on size needed.
Hunt'nFish

 

[LBFowler]

I'd recommend against canvas or nomex, while both are spark resistantish they will still char, and good luck waterproofing the nomex. Most is a pretty loose weave.
if there is a canvas shop anywhere close to you I'd go there. I used to work at a shop that made canvas wall tents and they used the exact same fabric that Kifaru/seekoutside/everyone else uses.

some european tents have a kind of canvas stove jack, but they rely on insulated stove pipes to keep it from being a problem. A good stove jack is much less of a hassle then a complex pipe in my mind.