My husband and I had an Everguard 4" chimney liner installed on our Quadrafire pellet stove this fall. We are long overdue for cleaning out the tee at the back (it has been a rocky winter for us). We cannot get the cap off the tee to clean it out.
(I am new at this so please forgive me if I don't give the right information, give unnecessary info, or make up words or something!)
The pipe comes from the back of the stove and makes a 90 degree turn up the wall (with the tee at the bottom), goes up maybe 4 feet, makes another 90 degree turn, goes out the exterior wall into the chimney, then turns up again and goes straight up the chimney.
We cannot get the tee open (it's just like a cap at the very bottom of the tee.) I called the installer and he says yeah, they can be tough, it just takes some muscle. The installer said that it is likely clogged with ash/soot (which I'm sure is true, as I said, we are way overdue for cleaning it), which can also make it tough. Now, I admit my husband and I are more likely to play for the math team than the football team, but seriously!
We are at a loss for how to get the tee open. The installer said using a pipe wrench is likely to damage it. My husband tried heating it with a small butane torch but that didn't seem to do anything.
The stove lives in our finished basement and is the primary heat source for our 1300 sq.ft raised ranch, and we supplement with a propane stove on the main level and (gulp) electric in the bedrooms.
When we bought the house a year and a half ago we thought replacing the wood stove in the basement with a pellet stove would be a great choice for us (there is no oil in the house). Now with all the trouble we've had (this tee joint is just the latest; we also happen to be burning those athens pellets of dubious quality), I'd almost rather be paying off a huge debt of installing an oil furnace and hot water baseboards.
(I am new at this so please forgive me if I don't give the right information, give unnecessary info, or make up words or something!)
The pipe comes from the back of the stove and makes a 90 degree turn up the wall (with the tee at the bottom), goes up maybe 4 feet, makes another 90 degree turn, goes out the exterior wall into the chimney, then turns up again and goes straight up the chimney.
We cannot get the tee open (it's just like a cap at the very bottom of the tee.) I called the installer and he says yeah, they can be tough, it just takes some muscle. The installer said that it is likely clogged with ash/soot (which I'm sure is true, as I said, we are way overdue for cleaning it), which can also make it tough. Now, I admit my husband and I are more likely to play for the math team than the football team, but seriously!
We are at a loss for how to get the tee open. The installer said using a pipe wrench is likely to damage it. My husband tried heating it with a small butane torch but that didn't seem to do anything.
The stove lives in our finished basement and is the primary heat source for our 1300 sq.ft raised ranch, and we supplement with a propane stove on the main level and (gulp) electric in the bedrooms.
When we bought the house a year and a half ago we thought replacing the wood stove in the basement with a pellet stove would be a great choice for us (there is no oil in the house). Now with all the trouble we've had (this tee joint is just the latest; we also happen to be burning those athens pellets of dubious quality), I'd almost rather be paying off a huge debt of installing an oil furnace and hot water baseboards.
