Chimney liner question?

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GeeWizMan

Member
Hearth Supporter
Nov 29, 2006
103
Suburbs west of Detroit
I have a friend who was given a wood stove insert, Lopi something. He is a die hard do it yourselfer and is in the process of getting the items he needs to install the stove himself. I casually asked him if he was installing a stainless steel liner up through his existing chimney. He asked me why he needed liner and why couldn't he just vent the stove a short way up the chimney and stop. I couldn't give him an answer other than to say it was a lot safer. If I don't give him a better answer I'm pretty sure he will not install the liner. Can you please help me out so my friend doesn't burn down his house? What does a stainless steel liner provide?

Thanks for your help

George
 
Ask him how big his flue is - if it's interior and more than three times the cross-sectional area of the stove exit, it's not to code. If it's exterior and more than twice, it's not to code*

*Someone I'm sure will confirm this - pretty sure this is right

Either way, the stove will be more difficult to light, will not burn as well or as efficiently (more wood burnt), and will get more creosote build-up. At the very least has he had the chimney inspected for cracked flue tiles, loose mortar?
 
Appeal to his sense of efficiency. Since he is a DIY kinda guy tell him that if he lines the chimney then he just brushes the crud down into the firebox and scoops it up out of the stove. If he doesn't line it he has to pull that heavy sucker out of the fireplace every time and sweep the chimney and then jackass the stove back into the fireplace, and reconnect the short pipe. When I used to do that it was a half day job and a hurt back every year to clean the flue. Now it is a twenty minute job and no back pain or chipped bricks on the hearth. Or junk flying around the family room when the brush is run down the chimney.

Gives him more time to go do other DIY guy stuff. Like build a wing onto the house.
 
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