chimney pipe leaks

[brownpjs]

hello all, I have a dutchwest wood stove with the vent going straight up, replaced last year due to tree falling on my house. my contractor has been here every time it rains heavier than a drizzle to reseal the pipe at the roof fleshing & storm collar. they were just here again this morning to put tape on for temporary seal. my ? is what is the best way to stop pipe from leaking? it seems contractor does not know how to do it.

 

[DAKSY]

hello all, I have a dutchwest wood stove with the vent going straight up, replaced last year due to tree falling on my house. my contractor has been here every time it rains heavier than a drizzle to reseal the pipe at the roof fleshing & storm collar. they were just here again this morning to put tape on for temporary seal. my ? is what is the best way to stop pipe from leaking? it seems contractor does not know how to do it.

Can you post a pic of what the flashing, storm collar & the Class A look like? That may give us a better idea of what you're dealing with.

 

[brownpjs]

Can you post a pic of what the flashing, storm collar & the Class A look like? That may give us a better idea of what you're dealing with.

I cannot get on roof due to ailing back. the flue is single wall inside and I think the outside is either b-vent or all fuel ss pipe in two 2 foot sections.

 

[Wood Heat Stoves]

Where is the leak coming into the house? Is it dripping out of the support box, running down the outside of the pipe coming out of the support box? If water is collecting in the bottom of the support box, the gap between the top cone of the flashing and the Class A chimney that the storm collar covers is important, but you say you've already sealed that. There's also the joint where the flashing cone joins together. That should be sealed with silicone, too. Also make sure the roof shingles are going over the top of the flashing skirt on top. I once had a tree branch fall on a roof and couldn't find the leak (water was coming in on the outside of the support box. I found it by going up in the attic and saw a tiny hole the branch had punched in the roof just above the flashing that wasn't noticable from up above. The water was following the inside of the roof line to the outside of the suppooirt box and coming in there.

 

[DAKSY]

I cannot get on roof due to ailing back. the flue is single wall inside and I think the outside is either b-vent or all fuel ss pipe in two 2 foot sections.

If it's a woodstove chimney, it had better NOT be B-vent. It HAS to be Class A - no exceptions...SDO you know what the pitch of the roof is?

 

[brownpjs]

Where is the leak coming into the house? Is it dripping out of the support box, running down the outside of the pipe coming out of the support box? If water is collecting in the bottom of the support box, the gap between the top cone of the flashing and the Class A chimney that the storm collar covers is important, but you say you've already sealed that. There's also the joint where the flashing cone joins together. That should be sealed with silicone, too. Also make sure the roof shingles are going over the top of the flashing skirt on top. I once had a tree branch fall on a roof and couldn't find the leak (water was coming in on the outside of the support box. I found it by going up in the attic and saw a tiny hole the branch had punched in the roof just above the flashing that wasn't noticable from up above. The water was following the inside of the roof line to the outside of the suppooirt box and coming in there.

the 1st time water was leaking out of the support box, now it is running down the pipe. the sealant that was used seems to work only temporary

 

[brownpjs]

If it's a woodstove chomney, it had better NOT be B-vent. It HAS to be Class A - no exceptions...SDO you know what the pitch of the roof is?[/qu

the ss pipe is all fuel, the pitch of roof was a 3 pitch now it is a 1 pitch. the roof is now torch down rubber. the pipe comes out at the lowest point of roof

 

[Wood Heat Stoves]

If the water is inside the support box it can run down the outside of the pipe from there. That usually means it's coming in from the flashing so make sure to seal the seam where the flashing cone comes together.

 

[bag of hammers]

Also make sure the roof shingles are going over the top of the flashing skirt on top.

My roofer ran singles over the flashing all the way down the sides. Water running down the flashing got under the shingles on one side near the bottom - folowed the top edge of one of those shingles until it got to the edge of the flashing and under - then followed another back until it dripped into the support box and then onto corner of stove. Brownpjs, that story probably isn't helpful if you don't have a shingled roof, except to stress the critical nature of any flashing detail. I patched for now but probably will have to tear the flashing off and fix their mistake. Makes me crazy that some roofers get part messed up.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

How old is the rest of the roof? There is a possibility that the leak is from somewhere above the chimney and the chimney is just the first hole that the water comes to.

If the roof is in good shape and you are sure there are no leaks higher than the chimney, I'd find a different contractor.

Matt

 

[begreen]

We need to see topside to determine whether the flashing and chimney was correctly installed. If you can't post pictures then I would get a certified chimney sweep on the site. You need someone other than your contractor looking at this.

 

[brownpjs]

If the water is inside the support box it can run down the outside of the pipe from there. That usually means it's coming in from the flashing so make sure to seal the seam where the flashing cone comes together.

that is exactly what I suspected. the roof is less than a year old, torch down mod. rubber, I guess I'm going to have to get the roofer to look at it also.

 

[bag of hammers]

this may be crazy to suggest, but did roofer torch down the rubber membrane, then contractor installed the flashing after the fact? (since you had some storm damage, not sure of the sequence of events getting your roof and stove back into operation). I don't how what the membrane / flashing detail should look like on a non-shingled roof, but for some reason I sense a collision between roofer and contractor here? Agree with all other comments around the flashing seams, etc. but there may be an elephant sitting on your roof if the contractor is winging it up there...