First time stove insert owner - but the install looks really wonky!

Hello all! First time home owner, poster, and I'm anxious to be using my fireplace/wood burning stove - but I'm either too anal when it comes to the home, or my gut is right on the money.

When the home inspector walked through, before we bough the house, he noticed the insert was wobbly, and said "Hey, have a chimney sweep check this whole system out." The sellers did, and, the chimney sweep said "Everything is fine. Level 1 inspection conducted, no creosote buildup, etc..." Well........

When we move into the house, I smelled the fireplace.....on windy days...with the stove's doors closed (new gasket too). The air was coming from around the insert. Of course, this was during the summer, so I didn't pay it any mind. Makeshift solution: stuff paper towels in between the insert and the brick to stop airflow. It worked very well.

So, now Autumn is upon Virginia, and I'd like to get the stove going....but my gut is telling my something's not kosher. So, I started searching the internet on resources, and how things are supposed to be installed, etc. I wanted to see if their was a pipe coming from the stove to the chimney...or if it was just shoved into the fireplace (which I understand to be a big no-no). Well, the only damper is the one in the stove, and there's no pipe attached to the stove, and as far as I can tell, no lining in the chimney either.

So the sellers - who told me they LOVED their wood burning stove, had it just sitting in the fireplace without a block-off and/or a reline. I thought code required at least a partial, up to the first smoke block or something like that (not familiar with lingo yet...sorry)

So, I'm looking for advice, help, resources, etc...because I really don't trust the company who did the initial inspection, and well, if/when I call someone else...I want to be prepared so I know how the job is supposed to be done. OR, if it's a possible DIY project, I'm all for that.

Thanks in advance

Thanks for the quick replies. Attached are some pics of the stove. I pulled it out some for some shots, but I didn't want to pull it out all the way, just in case I couldn't get it back in

I had to use my cellphone camera - real one's on the fritz.

Thanks again,
Vinny

BTW: no electric fan hooked up either. Notice the wires. Again, thanks for the help.

You guys are awesome. Thanks for the info and the advice. I'm guessing what I will do is wait, save, and get a replacement down the road - properly installed. I'll look into the tax credit options, but I don't think I have the funds now.

I'll be lurking around

Vinny

eujamfh said:

When we got our Buck 91 from a neighbor, they had it installed as a "slammer" install. I put it in, and we did use it for part of the season last year. Not wanting to look back and say, "I am glad I saved $1500 on a liner install to use to fight the insurance company to cover the house fire..."

I called installers in the area, and they said in the 80s, it was all slammer install. Then, sometime in the late 80s there was code for at least a small stack up the flue. No one enforced it for another decade. It has only been recent that they require a full liner with new installs. Since it was in the house you bought, you would probably be covered insurance wise...but if you are really looking to use the stove, you may want to part with it, and set yourself up properly.

For us, a chimney cleaning on a non-lined stove runs $200ish in NOVA. Much less with a liner...and as others pointed, is there any price on safety?

Thats the bad thing about this site - you start to learn, and can not longer enjoy blissful ignorance (refering to myself as the ignorant one - not you!).

Click to expand...

I know! it seems that the more I start learning, the more inflamed I get. But like you said, "is there any price on safety?"

Too dust off this old gem: I decided to give the slammer install a try, and I was surprised to see how much heat it generated - even without the blower going. I'm thinking about trying to make this thing work; maybe rehabbing the insert. I guess it all depends on my tax refund this year.

Also, I just went to check out the blower/fan underneath and......it's missing! I had to chuckle. It looks like it was a fan or something.

The previous owners had the chimney cleaned before we bought the house, so I'm hoping I won't need a hoe . Also, Roger on the insulation - I need to get that done.

I just sent an email to American Energy Systems to see if the unit is a Country Flame or not. It had a serial on a creosote warning label....at least what's left of the warning...it's barely readable. Glad Serials are stamped

Wow, thanks for the info! I'm definitely going to stop using it until I get everything straightened out. When I can, I'm going to pull the whole thing out and take a look inside the fireplace and see what's what. I may have to wait, since I blew out my knee(surgery in April), I'm not as mobile as I'd like.

You guys are awesome.

Unit ID'd as a Country Flame B26. Now to get parts!

I love coming back here with updates I actually found the blower fan and motor tucked away in the garage, amonst some other things the previous owner left me - OPTEST SAT. I also discovered that the thermodisc installed was the wrong part, thanks to Mangum providing me with the old Country Flame B26 manual.

I've ordered and received the stack/flue transistion - 8" square-to-round (it's taller than I though it would be), the proper gasket and hardware to secure it in place.

My plan for this season is to make a plank/rail system to slide the stove out of the hearth (so it doesn't slam on the floor...and so I can slide it back into place), have the chimney swept and inspected, and then, thanks to this site's how-to's, install an 8" flex at least to the 1st flue tile, (with sheet metal block) slide the stove back into place, and attach properly.

I'm not sure if it's a lofty goal, but if it goes well, I'll document with pics and post - timeline undetermined. Hopefully someday it might help others