Manufactured chimney question

[dogwood]

I am getting ready to purchase some UL 103 HT rated triple wall manufactured chimney for my Solo Innova installation. That rating satisfies local code. The Tarm manual states you should use 24 gauge single wall chimney right as you exit the boiler. My question is, where do you transition from the single wall stovepipe to the triple walled pipe? Does this have to occur only when you penetrate the ceiling or a wall or should I transition sooner than that?

Amazing how expensive double and triple walled stovepipe has become. Best I could locate is $29.00 per foot at Northern and oddly enough it was less expensive than what I could find for double wall. I would like to safely run the single wall as far as I can before transitioning. I have a 12:12 pitched roof on a one and a half story Cape Cod style house (roof joists at 45% angle to the celling, like a child draws a house), have to exit the chimney 3-4 feet above the peak, and consequently this is a long, costly distance to cover. Appreciate your help and advice and will double check with the local building inspector.

Mike

 

[stee6043]

You should be able to run the single wall until either 1.) you go through a wall/ceiling or 2.) you can no longer meet the required clearance to combustibles required for single wall.

I'd definitely go as far as you can with single wall.......SS pipe is pricey.

Do you have a Menards close by? They have pretty good pricing on Supervent pipe, no shipping....

 

[dogwood]

Stee6043, I checked their site, and there aren't any Menards closer than Ohio. I live in the Western part of Virginia. I've been trying to find the Supervent pipe you suggested on their website but can't seem to locate it using their search function. You wouldn't happen to have the link to that page or remember how to navigate to it. I wonder what the required clearance to combustibles for single walls is, now that you mention it? Thanks for your advice. I'll keep searching their site. Its got to be there somewhere.

Mike

 

[stee6043]

Supervent is "Selkirk" brand pipe. I see the link below when I google it. I beleive clearance to combustibles for single wall is 18".....


http://www.selkirkcorp.com/supervent/

 

[dogwood]

Stee, I googled Supervent and found their UL 103 HT double wall, which is what I was looking for originallly, at the local Lowes. It costs $8.00 less per three foot section than what I was looking at at Northern and TSC, and is in stock. Thanks for the tip on Supervent. I emailed Menards to see if they could show me where to find it on their site to see if they do any better, and will look at the link you provided. Thanks for the clearance to combustible info.

Mike

 

[rkusek]

Stee, I googled Supervent and found their UL 103 HT double wall, which is what I was looking for originallly, at the local Lowes. It costs $8.00 less per three foot section than what I was looking at at Northern and TSC, and is in stock. Thanks for the tip on Supervent. I emailed Menards to see if they could show me where to find it on their site to see if they do any better, and will look at the link you provided. Thanks for the clearance to combustible info.

Mike

I used Supervent from Menards too. Menards usually has best prices over Lowes and Home Depot but their website sucks. For the most part, all they do is have a view of their weekly flyer. In there stores the had 6" SS but I had to special order 8". At the plumbing desk, I was able to view their product line on what must be just a company intranet site. Too bad they don't put all that online. I used about 10' of single wall up to my barn ceiling and then SS from that point on. It isn't too hard to install either. The Supervent install brochure shows you the different types of installs and what specialty parts you will need.

 

[dogwood]

Huskers and Stee. I received a reply from Menards stating their chimney pipe was an in-store item only. This is the opposite of Northern aand TSC who only had it on-line. Looks like Lowes will be the source for Supervent unless a local supplier, NB Handy, Floydian suggested, comes in better.

By the way the local used International Building Mechanical Code book stated "metal chimneys shall be constructed and installed in accordance with NFPA 211". I went to the National Fire Protection Association site and joined their organization as a freebie. It appears you might be able to access some relevant codes and standards on their site, http://www.nfpa.org/aboutthecodes/AboutTheCodes.asp?DocNum=211&cookie;_test=1. First you need to search out the right program to do the actual download as I discovered. Nothing is easy. I'm working on that next after calling NB Handy. Then I can verify combustion clearances, although I am sure the 18 inch clearances Stee6043 recalls for single wall pipe are right on time. Appreciate your input

Mike

 

[stee6043]

I wouldn't bother with navigating through the NFPA. The manufacturer of the pipe will have a spec and that spec will typically be what your inspector is going to look at. Not all municipalities in the USA have adopted NFPA. Many, but not all....

 

[chiefburritt]

I wouldn't bother with navigating through the NFPA. The manufacturer of the pipe will have a spec and that spec will typically be what your inspector is going to look at. Not all municipalities in the USA have adopted NFPA. Many, but not all....

While not all munies have adopted NFPA codes it has become the standard by which all is judged when you have an incident. Their free viewing of their codes and standards can help you in many different ways. and just for fun..... NFPA = not for practical applications

 

[dogwood]

I wish I could access their codes. Keep getting an error message saying I can't use their RealRead program to read their files becasue I don't have Java applets enabled. Downloaded those applets, and updated the rest of Java again, enabled cookies, and defeated pop-up blocker and tried a couple other things. No good. Others seem to have the same difficulty getting into the codes with RealRead I found out by googling the error message. I'll try at work tomorrow. Maybe they have better functioning applets there. And I'll check out the manufacturers specs on the pipe as you suggest Stee6043. Thanks.

Mike

 

[Gooserider]

What I usually suggest is to make a plan w/ materials, clearances, and such, and go down to the inspectors office, bringing all the manuals or spec sheets that you have used to make the plan, w/ relevant bits highlighted, and essentially say "This is what I'm planning, do you see any problems?" and "If I build it like this, will you pass it?"

If you can show that you've done your homework, and are wanting to make sure there aren't any issues, the inspector will normally be willing to go over your stuff and point out any potential issues and concerns... Having gotten this sort of "pre-aproval" on your materials and plans, when the inspector shows up, he should mostly just be looking to see if you built what you told him you would...

This should both make the inspection process go smoother, and be a big factor on your side if any questions do come up during the inspection, as you can essentially say "I came to see you on ..... and you said this would be OK, what happened?

Another thing to keep in mind, is that most of the manufacturers will have technical manual sheets that will say how to install their products - these will tell you what the manufacturer requires, which is usually a combination of code and testing results. These instructions will satisfy the requirements for most inspectors, and are generally easier to follow and understand... As a general rule of thumb, the manufacturer will know what the code requirements are, and will work them into the instructions, or if doing something other than code, will have test results to show it's safe (i.e. if using lower clearance measurements) - thus most inspectors will inspect according to the manufacturer requirements, NOT according to the official "code", but often the two are the same.... Therefore I'd worry much more about making sure I have all the relevant manufacturer spec pages than I would on actually trying to read codes. The codes are more the "fallback" position if you can't find manufacturer specs...

Gooserider

 

[dogwood]

Gooserider, I have been thinking about compiling all the spec sheets on each product I'm using for the inspector in case he wanted to question anything. Since you mention it, this reinforces that notion as a useful thing to do. It never hurts to be prepared. The mechanical inspector did in general give me the go ahead for the project when I broadly outlined the installation for him, showed my plumbing schematic and Solo Innova brochure. He did in no uncertain terms want the boiler to be UL approved. I'll get on it. And Happy Thanksgiving to you and your fellow moderators. You do a great job.

Mike

 

[Gooserider]

Thanks for the kind words, hope you have a good holiday season as well...

Gooserider