whats the best way to cut hole in floor to vent?

i have a stove on the first floor with a staircase to the upstairs.can i just go and cut two holes in the cieling above the stove to take heat to the rooms above it?any ideas on how to do this if i can?i have cieling stapled 12x12 tile cieling then a foot between floors then carpet on floors upstairs help please!!

Sure can...... I would first use a stud finder to make sure your ceiling hole will not hit any joists & then take down a ceiling tile/cut a hole. (watch out for pipes/wires)
Drill a hole up into the floor above & stick a coat hanger up there so you can find it on the 2nd floor, then cut your floor vent above. (I would also line the new hole with sheet metal so that all the warm air will rise to the 2nd floor & not get sidetracked between the ceiling & floor)

Be aware that in most areas, cutting those openings in the ceiling to the second level violates fire code. You should install registers in the openings with fire dampers. These have a link that would burn quickly and shut the register in the event of a fire.

coalkirk wrote:Be aware that in most areas, cutting those openings in the ceiling to the second level violates fire code. You should install registers in the openings with fire dampers. These have a link that would burn quickly and shut the register in the event of a fire.

Interesting....What is the thinking of making it a code violation to cut a hole (evidently) in close proximity to an open staircase?

Devil5052 wrote:

coalkirk wrote:Be aware that in most areas, cutting those openings in the ceiling to the second level violates fire code. You should install registers in the openings with fire dampers. These have a link that would burn quickly and shut the register in the event of a fire.

Interesting....What is the thinking of making it a code violation to cut a hole (evidently) in close proximity to an open staircase?

Im guessing an open staircase is only one opening to the upstairs verses multiple vent holes to allow faster fire spread.

An open staircase is likely to have either plaster, or drywall on the walls and ceiling. A hole in the ceiling between the joists in a floor/ceiling is a wood lined chimney and will rapidly spread a fire. Used to be you had to put 'fire blocks' in walls, a 2x4 across each vertical 16"o/c stud wall gap, so each vertical gap had some impediment to fire traveling up the wood sided chimney. I'm not sure if this is still code in most places or not. but was when I built my last house.

Some fire laws and codes are interesting, like 5/8" drywall required between a garage and a living space, fire blocks in stud wall passageways, and air gaps around chimneys, but the new 'zero clearance' chimneys make me pause and think a bit...

Greg L.

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