Blaze King Chimney Question

[monster_maul]

I am considering replacing my older basement Regency F3100 with the big Blaze King model. My chimney is an exterior 7x7 masonary tera cotta flue. It's high,, close to 40' total,, very strong draft. When I burn the Regency, 6" stove pipe of course, I burn with the stove pipe damper almost completely closed because of the strong draft. I've also burned an old Thermo Control smoke dragon stove, 8" stove pipe, had no issues with draft.

My question is,, would this chimney support the big Blaze King stove? Should it be insulated/lined? If so, do I have any options for insulation with this chimney? If the draft is really strong, can a stove pipe damper be used on the Blaze King?

I've posed this question to one of the local Blaze King dealers,, they said they would get back to me with an answer, never did.

 

[rdust]

The area is about the same as an 8" flue so the size should be fine. The key will be if it can stay warm enough to draft well with the low flue temps of the BK, with 40' of chimney I'd think it has a chance.

Another issue is not many masonry chimney's in older houses(doesn't apply if you're dealing with a new build) are up to par when it comes to burning, if yours checks out without any cracks in the clay liner I'd give it a shot. The only issue is if it doesn't work out you won't be fitting an 8" liner down that chimney without it becoming a major project.

You "shouldn't" need a pipe damper with a BK, it can be pretty much turned down except for a small hole in the air damper required by the EPA. If you end up needing one it can be added at any point.

 

[cmonSTART]

Your size is adequate for a BK King, though as suggested above always have your chimney inspected prior to installing a new appliance.

 

[monster_maul]

Thanks for the replies, this forum is a great source of information.

cmonSTART, I see in your profile that you also offer the full line of chimney services. What are the options for lining/insulating a 7x7 rectangular masonary chimney? I've been told that for insulation, there's some kind of mix and pour product available. Could this be used to provide some insulation for this exterior chimney without loosing too much of the internal flue area?

If I went with a stove that has 6" requirements instead of 8", then what are the options for an insulated liner?

 

[cmonSTART]

Welcome to the forum BTW!

The best and most proper way of installing/insulating a liner in your size of flue is to remove the clay tile completely, first. Poured insulation, per the manufacturer's listing, testing, etc requires a thickness of at least 1 inch around the liner, and in a 7x7 flue there just isn't enough room inside to accomplish this - even with a 6 inch liner. Blanket wraps only require 1/2 inch but even that isn't really possible to install in a flue that size.

Blaze King stoves have very low exhaust temperatures, so a properly insulated, properly sized liner is very very important in order to function as it should and stay clean - especially in a 40 foot exterior chimney.