Thread: Plumbing gravity HWS to wood stove

I'm about to take delivery of a new wood stove with wet back, which I intend to plumb in to my existing (all gravity) hot water system. I know that a continuous fall/rise is required, but I'm wondering how much I should aim for.

To get from the stove to the tank means going along the wall for about 9'. Keeping the plumbing beneath the workbench (my preferred solution) I can get about a 12" rise over that distance. From there it is straight up in the corner of the room to ceiling height and only a couple more feet (at a good angle) to the tank. Obviously I can have a steeper incline if I bring the pipework above the bench, but do I really need to or do you reckon the 1 in 9 is enough? The wall in question has a couple of windows and is the main 'feature' wall, so I'd rather not ugly it up if I can avoid it.

Cheers,
Dusty