Advise on Enviro Boston 1700 vs BK Ashford 25 and Several Newbie (yet specific) Questions

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I have called every BK dealer in NY, CT, and NJ.
They ALL told me the same thing that they don’t use blanket or preinsulated liner. One dealer/installer in NJ told me exactly the same thing Captain Soot told me that preinsulated liner is needed in up North or in colder climates.




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Try calling sweeps. Stove shops are more concerned with keeping install prices down to sell more stoves than anything else.
https://codes.iccsafe.org/public/document/IRC2015/chapter-10-chimneys-and-fireplaces

Read r1003.18

It describes the required clearances. It then says you dont need those clearances if you use a ul 1777 liner listed for use in chimneys without clearances. No liner is listed in that way without insulation.
 
I believe you and others.
I guess BK should educate all the dealers in tristate :)


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BKVP should give us his thoughts on this
 
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Try calling sweeps. Stove shops are more concerned with keeping install prices down to sell more stoves than anything else.
https://codes.iccsafe.org/public/document/IRC2015/chapter-10-chimneys-and-fireplaces

Read r1003.18

It describes the required clearances. It then says you dont need those clearances if you use a ul 1777 liner listed for use in chimneys without clearances. No liner is listed in that way without insulation.

Last Night I called a sweep from the list NoGoodAtScreenNames recommended. He didnt have BK but recommended Boston 1700. When I asked him about installation he told me I do not need preinsulated liner or blanket. He said like Captain Soot that he would put insulation on top. Something is wrong with tristate dealers/sweeps, I guess.


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Great advice. What did you use and how did you make it not to fall?


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Just some sheet metal from the orange store and stuffed a whole bunch of Roxul on top. I made a cut out with cardboard to get the dimensions right then transferred it to the sheet metal and added some flaps on the side to screw into the mortar between the bricks. Plenty of threads here on block off plates to get ideas from.


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110 million BTUs annually? You got airleaks? What is the R value of your walls and ceilings? What can you do about it?

Just asking, I know I have a pretty fine insulation envelope compared to the lower 48, and I am out of calibration.... i am up against something like 14-15 thousand HDD (heating degree days) annually. 110mBTU sounds like a lot, at least for my envelope.
 
110 million BTUs annually? You got airleaks? What is the R value of your walls and ceilings? What can you do about it?

Just asking, I know I have a pretty fine insulation envelope compared to the lower 48, and I am out of calibration.... i am up against something like 14-15 thousand HDD (heating degree days) annually. 110mBTU sounds like a lot, at least for my envelope.

I’d like to think that our house is not so bad insulated. It went under major construction/extension 9 years ago.
New windows, floors walls etc.
It is 2 stories plus basement. Without basement it is about 2400 sq.
You think 1100 therm is too much?


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I’d like to think that our house is not so bad insulated. It went under major construction/extension 9 years ago.
New windows, floors walls etc.
It is 2 stories plus basement. Without basement it is about 2400 sq.
You think 1100 therm is too much?


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I honestly don't know if 100 mBTU is unreasonable for your location. I too have 2400 sqft, in climate zone zero. I keep 1200sqft at +/- 65dF, and the other 1200sqft at 85-90dF, and I consume 275 mBTU annually, including DWH (domestic hot water).

If there is something/anything you can do to improve your air sealing or R value it will save you money no matter what form of energy you are using for primary heat. For me, If I can feel cold air coming in around one spot in one window in one bedroom and fix it, I save a couple hundred bucks a year, every year, for the rest of the time I own the house. The window leak I fixed seven years ago, $1400 still in my pocket.
 
I guess BK should educate all the dealers in tristate :)
Yes, that would be consistent. BK strongly recommends double-wall stove pipe for the same reason with freestanding stove installations.
 
110 million BTUs annually? You got airleaks? What is the R value of your walls and ceilings? What can you do about it?

Just asking, I know I have a pretty fine insulation envelope compared to the lower 48, and I am out of calibration.... i am up against something like 14-15 thousand HDD (heating degree days) annually. 110mBTU sounds like a lot, at least for my envelope.
We can't all live in hermetic bubbles, Poindexter. I'm burning 300 million BTU's, and I'm only at 5000 annual HDD's.
 
Yes with a freestander that is the easiest way for sure. I for some reason though this thread was about an insert. It isnt a big deal at all on a freestander. I find it much easier and i can be sure i am thorough if i pull the cat when it cant be accessed from above. There is also a danger of damaging the back of the cat with the vacume hose. But either way on bks it isnt hard to pull the cat. Unless the housing warps a little which i have seen.

Why do you pull the bricks? There is no need to do that at all.
The Ashford 25 bypass is not hinged and lift as in freestanding models or the Princess insert. It slides front to back. There is a removable baffle plate, then it's a straight shot up the flue. So cleaning from below is less obstructed and less likely to have debris accumulate behind the cat.
 
The Ashford 25 bypass is not hinged and lift as in freestanding models or the Princess insert. It slides front to back. There is a removable baffle plate, then it's a straight shot up the flue. So cleaning from below is less obstructed and less likely to have debris accumulate behind the cat.
Ok good i have yet to come across one of them in the field. We dont have that many bks here but the ones we have are princesses and kings. It sounds like the ashfords are easier to clean without pulling the cat. Either way it really isnt a big deal to do. They are pretty easy to work on.

Any comments on bk dealers saying there is no need for insulation with out verifying required clearances?
 
Ok good i have yet to come across one of them in the field. We dont have that many bks here but the ones we have are princesses and kings. It sounds like the ashfords are easier to clean without pulling the cat. Either way it really isnt a big deal to do. They are pretty easy to work on.

Any comments on bk dealers saying there is no need for insulation with out verifying required clearances?
I don't think it's a BK dealer issue.....I think across the USA, many, far too many dealers, are not informed on codes and standards. There is no such thing as a BK dealer, they are hearth retailers. They sell many brands, So really, you are correct without a doubt, just far too many ignore or are not informed. As the OP found out, many sweeps (probably know the requirement if CSIA certified) still choose to not place insulated liners.

I'll bring this up at the next industry manufacturers meeting in Denver in October. I am the co chair for the solid fuel group. I will suggest that perhaps manuals need to be more explicit. Even doing so, we know there are lots of folks that will still do it the way they are accustomed to doing it.
 
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I don't think it's a BK dealer issue.....I think across the USA, many, far too many dealers, are not informed on codes and standards. There is no such thing as a BK dealer, they are hearth retailers. They sell many brands, So really, you are correct without a doubt, just far too many ignore or are not informed. As the OP found out, many sweeps (probably know the requirement if CSIA certified) still choose to not place insulated liners.

I'll bring this up at the next industry manufacturers meeting in Denver in October. I am the co chair for the solid fuel group. I will suggest that perhaps manuals need to be more explicit. Even doing so, we know there are lots of folks that will still do it the way they are accustomed to doing it.
Very well said. And yes there are sweeps even csia ones who should know better that still choose to ignore the codes.
 
I don't think it's a BK dealer issue.....I think across the USA, many, far too many dealers, are not informed on codes and standards. There is no such thing as a BK dealer, they are hearth retailers. They sell many brands, So really, you are correct without a doubt, just far too many ignore or are not informed. As the OP found out, many sweeps (probably know the requirement if CSIA certified) still choose to not place insulated liners.

I'll bring this up at the next industry manufacturers meeting in Denver in October. I am the co chair for the solid fuel group. I will suggest that perhaps manuals need to be more explicit. Even doing so, we know there are lots of folks that will still do it the way they are accustomed to doing it.

When I showed BK Ashford 25’s manual that states that insulated liner is recommended to the dealer he said that it says recommended not required. I looked at Enviro Boston 1700 it doesn’t even state recommendation.
If it is indeed that crucial to use insulated liner, a stronger language ( Required/ Needed etc) should be used in the manuals including BK’s. That would save a lot of trouble to people like me.


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When I showed BK Ashford 25’s manual that states that insulated liner is recommended to the dealer he said that it says recommended not required. I looked at Enviro Boston 1700 it doesn’t even state recommendation.
If it is indeed that crucial to use insulated liner, a stronger language ( Required/ Needed etc) should be used in the manuals including BK’s. That would save a lot of trouble to people like me.


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It really isnt up to the stove manufacturers to tell installers how to meet code. They all say the chimney should be up to all applicable codes. It really isnt their fault some installers dont do their job properly.
 
It really isnt up to the stove manufacturers to tell installers how to meet code. They all say the chimney should be up to all applicable codes. It really isnt their fault some installers dont do their job properly.

I talked to over 20 installer/dealer/sweeper in tristate area and NONE of them told me that insulated line is required or recommended. Statistically speaking, that’s really bizarre.


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I talked to over 20 installer/dealer/sweeper in tristate area and NONE of them told me that insulated line is required or recommended. Statistically speaking, that’s really bizarre.


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Yes it is. And very disappointing.
 
I talked to over 20 installer/dealer/sweeper in tristate area and NONE of them told me that insulated line is required or recommended. Statistically speaking, that’s really bizarre.

Again, it’s not required, if your chimney is up to code. However, bholler’s experience (as a chimney sweep and installer) is that very few chimneys are ever up to code, for various reasons. That’s where the discrepancy lies, your local installers somehow don’t recognize that while you have a chimney, it may not meet the current code.

In any case, the liner is always RECOMMENDED. Right there on p.16 of my Ashford manual, in their boldest print: “**Blaze King recommends the use of a Stainless steel liner, preferably insulated, inside a masonry chimney. This to maintain proper draft and overall better operation of the unit.”

So, you might do well to show your local dealers the BK manual. Maybe they’ve never read it!
 
Again, it’s not required, if your chimney is up to code. However, bholler’s experience (as a chimney sweep and installer) is that very few chimneys are ever up to code, for various reasons. That’s where the discrepancy lies, your local installers somehow don’t recognize that while you have a chimney, it may not meet the current code.

In any case, the liner is always RECOMMENDED. Right there on p.16 of my Ashford manual, in their boldest print: “**Blaze King recommends the use of a Stainless steel liner, preferably insulated, inside a masonry chimney. This to maintain proper draft and overall better operation of the unit.”

So, you might do well to show your local dealers the BK manual. Maybe they’ve never read it!

I already did and he said it is recommended not required and he and obviously along with other dealers/installers/sweepers think it is not needed.


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Can you find a dealer or installer that will install what you want without the opinion? It is up to the customer to say want they want. You are the one that is paying for this installation and the one the will be paying the fuel and cleaning costs as time goes by.
 
In an effort to bring more attention to this entire subject, @begreen, we should have a thread dedicated to the topic. Title should be DO I NEED AN INSULATED LINER FOR MY WOOD OR PELLET INSERT?"

Let bholler start it with the codes and standards cites and then it will go from there. This site is viewed hundreds of time daily. This can become the wave of education for shoppers...that in turn will be asking the same question as the OP!

Let's get this going!
 
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In an effort to bring more attention to this entire subject, @begreen, we should have a thread dedicated to the topic. Title should be DO I NEED AN INSULATED LINER FOR MY WOOD OR PELLET INSERT?"

Let bholler start it with the codes and standards cites and then it will go from there. This site is viewed hundreds of time daily. This can become the wave of education for shoppers...that in turn will be asking the same question as the OP!

Let's get this going!
I can do that
 
In an effort to bring more attention to this entire subject, @begreen, we should have a thread dedicated to the topic. Title should be DO I NEED AN INSULATED LINER FOR MY WOOD OR PELLET INSERT?"

Let bholler start it with the codes and standards cites and then it will go from there. This site is viewed hundreds of time daily. This can become the wave of education for shoppers...that in turn will be asking the same question as the OP!

Let's get this going!

I think at least BK should use stronger language in their manuals/installation guides.


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I think at least BK should use stronger language in their manuals/installation guides.


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Honestly it is the liner manufacturers not the stove manufacturers that need to improve their manuals. It really isnt the stove manufacturers job or place to give proper instructions for other peoples products. I am not at all against stove manufacturers pushing this point. Anything to improve performance and safety is good. But it really isnt their job.
 
I talked to over 20 installer/dealer/sweeper in tristate area and NONE of them told me that insulated line is required or recommended. Statistically speaking, that’s really bizarre.


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Other than what @Ashful , @bholler , @BKVP have said, Blaze King is specific with pointing out that they prefer an insulated liner due to the lower exhaust temps there stoves produce, this is because there stoves have a higher efficiency rating then most on the market, the epa reburn tube stove runs cleanest when secondary combustion kicks in at 1,150 deg F vs 550deg f for a cat stove, naturally the flue temps are going to be hotter with the epa tube stove because its ran a higher throttle to achieve its epa rating for a clean burn, while the cat stove can be throttled back, remain active in burning off smoke particles, producing heat while having a lower flue gas exhaust temp.
What does all that hoopla mean for an insulated liner? Assuming that the chimney is 100% working order and meets all codes, the insulated liner adds additional protection / aide in keeping the flue gases from condensing and creating the by-product called creosote, especially when using a cat stove that can be burned at a lower temp.