My insurance company has said they won't insure my existing stove (too old and doesn't have an EPA rating), so I need a new stove and a WETT inspection (I'm in Canada).
My current setup is a free standing wood stove in my basement. It connects to a masonry chimney like this:
Unlike this diagram, there is no metal liner in the chimney. Instead I have the original clay liner, which is still in good condition.
Because the stove is in the basement, the are no combustibles near where the stove enters the chimney. However, the chimney goes past the main floor and attic of the house. There I have 1/2" of clearance from the house framing.
From my digging around it seems that 1/2" clearance is fine if the chimney is on the exterior of the house. However, at some point a garage was added around the chimney, so presumably this now counts as being an "interior" chimney, which requires 2" clearance.
I know I can't get a real answer to my question without paying for an inspection by an expert in all the local rules. But I would like to learn all I can before I start shoving out $300+tax.
I would love to just order a new stove, hook up the stovepipe and be done with it. But I don't want to do all that, then pay $300+tax for an inspection that I will still fail.
If it isn't OK to just swap out my existing stove, then it seems that the solution is putting an insulated liner in the existing masonry chimney. Unfortunately, I can't find anyone who sells insulated liners around here. The local hardware stores sell regular liners, but those still require the 2" clearance. I've gotten estimates from a couple places that having them install an insulated liner will cost at least $2500 and up to $5000. That's more than I might spend on a new stove! (I've been looking at the Drolet 1800.)
In short, my question is: Do I definitely need an insulated liner or is there a chance I can just swap out the stove and be good to go?
P.S. Thank you so much to this community. I've been lurking for a while figuring all this out. I have learned so much here already. Hopefully I've learned enough to ask an intelligent question!
My current setup is a free standing wood stove in my basement. It connects to a masonry chimney like this:
Unlike this diagram, there is no metal liner in the chimney. Instead I have the original clay liner, which is still in good condition.
Because the stove is in the basement, the are no combustibles near where the stove enters the chimney. However, the chimney goes past the main floor and attic of the house. There I have 1/2" of clearance from the house framing.
From my digging around it seems that 1/2" clearance is fine if the chimney is on the exterior of the house. However, at some point a garage was added around the chimney, so presumably this now counts as being an "interior" chimney, which requires 2" clearance.
I know I can't get a real answer to my question without paying for an inspection by an expert in all the local rules. But I would like to learn all I can before I start shoving out $300+tax.
I would love to just order a new stove, hook up the stovepipe and be done with it. But I don't want to do all that, then pay $300+tax for an inspection that I will still fail.
If it isn't OK to just swap out my existing stove, then it seems that the solution is putting an insulated liner in the existing masonry chimney. Unfortunately, I can't find anyone who sells insulated liners around here. The local hardware stores sell regular liners, but those still require the 2" clearance. I've gotten estimates from a couple places that having them install an insulated liner will cost at least $2500 and up to $5000. That's more than I might spend on a new stove! (I've been looking at the Drolet 1800.)
In short, my question is: Do I definitely need an insulated liner or is there a chance I can just swap out the stove and be good to go?
P.S. Thank you so much to this community. I've been lurking for a while figuring all this out. I have learned so much here already. Hopefully I've learned enough to ask an intelligent question!
