Chimney Nightmare

[FishKiller]

like many of you i took advantage of the nice weather last week to do a cleaning. while up on the roof i made a very unpleasant discovery. the chimney flue pipe (8"x8" clay) was damaged. i cleaned it in October and everything seemed fine, my guess is that it was damaged during hurricane sandy. living on the jersey shore, i thought the house had made it unscathed and i was lucky... apparently not. several of the clay blocks are cracked above where the chimney is thimbled in and the mortar between the top brick and the rest is separated. it appears structurally compromised... so what do i do?

the chimney system runs through the middle of house, its actually like a 8'x4' concrete block box that runs up the middle of the house with 3 separate flues. 1 for the boiler, 1 for the main stove (which is damaged) and 1 6"x6" that has never been used, it goes to the basement for a secondary stove. there currently isn't a secondary stove, but there is a 6" thimble and stove pipe, a brick pad and rock back drop. really easy install.

i think my options are to put a liner in the damaged chimney, which means probably knocking the clay bricks out or abandoning the main stove and hooking up a new stove in the basement till i have the money to fix the main. problem is, the basement is finished, and the drop ceiling is very well insulated. i don't know how well the heat would make it to the rest of the house, anyone have any experience with this? oh, i have central heating and air, so all my ducts are hooked up (no openings between levels). any ideas?

 

[BrotherBart]

First stop is your homeowner's insurance agent.

 

[FishKiller]

yeah, i started that process already. i'm just trying to consider all my options while i wait and prepare for the worst.

 

[topoftheriver]

like many of you i took advantage of the nice weather last week to do a cleaning. while up on the roof i made a very unpleasant discovery. the chimney flue pipe (8"x8" clay) was damaged. i cleaned it in October and everything seemed fine, my guess is that it was damaged during hurricane sandy. living on the jersey shore, i thought the house had made it unscathed and i was lucky... apparently not. several of the clay blocks are cracked above where the chimney is thimbled in and the mortar between the top brick and the rest is separated. it appears structurally compromised... so what do i do?

the chimney system runs through the middle of house, its actually like a 8'x4' concrete block box that runs up the middle of the house with 3 separate flues. 1 for the boiler, 1 for the main stove (which is damaged) and 1 6"x6" that has never been used, it goes to the basement for a secondary stove. there currently isn't a secondary stove, but there is a 6" thimble and stove pipe, a brick pad and rock back drop. really easy install.

i think my options are to put a liner in the damaged chimney, which means probably knocking the clay bricks out or abandoning the main stove and hooking up a new stove in the basement till i have the money to fix the main. problem is, the basement is finished, and the drop ceiling is very well insulated. i don't know how well the heat would make it to the rest of the house, anyone have any experience with this? oh, i have central heating and air, so all my ducts are hooked up (no openings between levels). any ideas?

I agree with checking with your insurance agent. But a simular situation occured with a friend. It was an 8X8 flue. We put together a 6" pipe and dropped it in gradually from the top. Then we fabricated some 1/4" steel with a 90degree elbow to the stove. After the finishing touches, everything worked fine. Not a giant problem with the heat in the pipe. Draft is good. Stove works great. It was "A" solution. Not sure about code but it worked and still works great. Incidentally, that was a few years back and still going. Food for thought.

 

[FishKiller]

thanks,
i'm kinda concerned with the integrity of the clay flue... i would hate to drop in a liner and then have the flue collapse or something. second problem is the 8" stove pipe from my current stove. i suppose i could reduce it, but not sure of the results. regardless of what happens with insurance, i'm still interested in putting in a secondary stove in the basement.
any suggestions on how to move the heat throughout the house?
would cutting vents into the floor and connecting them to the drop ceiling with a duct work? this way i can close it when i run the AC in the summer.

and next will be stove suggestions

 

[chimneylinerjames]

Yes if the flues are damaged you will need a chimney liner. The best thing to do is, as you said, remove the flue tiles and drop down a 6" stainless steel chimney liner with insulation.

Not so sure it was caused by a hurricane, but at least call the insurance and see what they say. If they say yes, awesome, but be prepared for it not to be covered.

 

[topoftheriver]

Yes if the flues are damaged you will need a chimney liner. The best thing to do is, as you said, remove the flue tiles and drop down a 6" stainless steel chimney liner with insulation.

Not so sure it was caused by a hurricane, but at least call the insurance and see what they say. If they say yes, awesome, but be prepared for it not to be covered.

Agreed.

 

[coaly]

Most insurance companies quote the phrase "sudden and accidental". May take a sweep to assure them it was just that.

 

[Redlegs]

any suggestions on how to move the heat throughout the house? would cutting vents into the floor and connecting them to the drop ceiling with a duct work? this way i can close it when i run the AC in the summer​

Not sure how much distance between drop ceiling and regular ceiling, but If you're gonna run duct work, would you have room enough for an independent fan or a blower in there to move warm air up, or maybe blow the cooler air down and create a warm draft up the stairs?

 

[BobUrban]

Did you clean it or did you have it cleaned in October. I ask because this will help solidify the "sudden and accidental" part required for an insurance claim. Photos from October would be helpful as well. If you had a pro out to clean or inspect it at any time contact them for records of their findings(if you do not have them yourself) as this will verify the timeline of the damage and provide credibility for the claim.