Existing Chimney Concerns

[begreen]

Not sure, but earlier than 1997 I believe.

Edit: Looks like Rick called it at 1958.

 

[firefighterjake]

Sounds like an expensive endeavor. Some demo would have to happen to be able to access everything. It has been like this for years with no issues and the previous owners relied on wood heat only but I assume that I can't be confident this will always be the case.

Exactly . . . just because this wrong installation hasn't burned down the place YET is no reason it could not lead to a disaster in the future.

I hear folks attempt to justify bad installations or practices all the time in my line of business . . . whether it's an incorrect woodstove installation, poor cooking practices, failure to maintain their smoke alarms properly, etc.

Good for you for checking . . . and wanting to do the right (and safe) thing.

 

[Ashful]

There's an interesting property of wood, in that frequent exposure to high temperatures actually reduces its combustion temperature. So, your wood may start with a combustion temperature over 240*F, but after years of exposure to the outside of that class-A, it may be cooked to the point where it finally catches fire at 220*F. It's a common problem with wood in proximity to chimneys, and is the reason for a lot of the provisions in the code, which may not make sense until this is considered.

 

[patdale]

Thanks again for all the great help everyone. I have the local stove store scheduled to come the 21st and I'm interested in what they'll have to say. I definitely want to keep the stove but it will come down to how much it costs to fix. I will keep you updated.

 

[Swedishchef]

Keep us posted. I am curious to see what they tell you. I would also contact your real estate agent!

Andrew

 

[jjs777_fzr]

Very unsafe install - I'd consider swapping out the wood stove and just throw in a pellet stove.
Otherwise your looking at some serious money for a professional to come in there and yank everything out and redo it to code.
I wouldn't loose any sleep using a pellet stove in that setup based on the photos.

 

[patdale]

I'm curious on the options I would have with contacting my real estate agent. Everything was put in by the original owner and we are now the fifth. I went back and looked at my inspection report and it specified the stove was not part of the inspection and suggested a chimney sweep look it over. I did have one come before last winter but they just swept the chimney and these issues are not in the open. They did mention that they had swept the chimney in previous years but I guess they never noticed these issues.

 

[begreen]

Your sweep and jimmyjon's inspector have a lot in common.

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[Swedishchef]

Perhaps your real estate agent could propose some type of solution. Where I live the way this situation would work: you go after the seller, he has to go after the other seller, etc. Eventually someone pays. Someone should have to pay and that someone should not be you. I don't necessarily agree with that "going after someone" process but when you get shafted like this it is not a pleasant feeling.

I don't find it fair that something which was not covered under the inspection and not observed by the sweep will now cost you $

A

 

[Ashful]

Gotta love that $1000 max liability policy that most home inspectors have you sign these days. Almost makes the home inspection pointless, not that a second pair of eyes on things is ever a bad thing. Inspectors need to take some responsibility when they miss things this obvious!

 

[begreen]

When our home was inspected we got a similar caveat saying he did not inspect the heating system. Guess what was the most defectively and dangerously installed system in the house? Yup.

 

[patdale]

Well I got a chance to head back into the attic and I pulled away a board that let me see down into the wall cavity the chimney runs up. All the clearances look good and there is some sort of shield/ceiling box where the chimney comes through the first floor. If we can fix everything in the basement, it looks like a 15 degree elbow added to the chimney in the wall cavity would take care of all the clearance problems in the attic.

 

[Swedishchef]

That is great news Do you still plan on getting your local sweep over to take a look?

Andrew

 

[patdale]

That is great news Do you still plan on getting your local sweep over to take a look?

Andrew

Yes, I have someone coming next Friday and the Friday after. I wanted to get a couple opinions.

 

[Swedishchef]

WHat did today's inspection give?

A

 

[patdale]

WHat did today's inspection give?

A

Nothing this week, it will be the 21st and 28th.

 

[Wood Duck]

When our home was inspected we got a similar caveat saying he did not inspect the heating system. Guess what was the most defectively and dangerously installed system in the house? Yup.

Home inspection is the most worthless ripoff in any real estate transaction, and that is saying something considering the prevalence of worthless ripoffs in the real estate business. Our home inspection included a clause that the inspector is not responsible for any oversight, but I was required to pay for an inspection before the sale. What a scam! What other 'professional' claims no responsibility for the quality of their work?

OK, enough complaining...It seems like the key is to determine if the flue is OK about the section with the 45s. Maybe you can replace the black pipe and change the 45s and get away with a modest amount of work. I think the suggestion that perhaps the stove can be moved is a good one.

 

[patdale]

Well I didn't find much out today. They just came out and took some pictures. Now they will send an estimate that will include a bunch of parts that might not be needed. They said they can't do much or have an idea what is needed until they actually open it up and see what they are working with. Might get a price for just going out the wall and up the side of the house too, then I can remove the original chimney. The neighbor confirmed that the builder did put the chimney in!

Hopefully I get some better advice from the inspection next week.

 

[patdale]

Can you connect 15 degree chimney elbows directly to each other with no pipe in between?

 

[begreen]

Yes, that's a short offset.

 

[patdale]

Yes, that's a short offset.

Is it correct that it would be a 2" offset?

That would solve my issue in the attic. I am 1" away from the truss on one side and 5" from the outside wall so adding the two elbows would almost center the chimney between the truss and wall and still provide the 2" clearance.

I hope the guy coming out next week is more helpful. I think I knew more than the guy today from all the help I've received here and the reading I've done.

 

[begreen]

According to the DuraTech offset chart that would be correct, a 2" offset and 16.5" rise.

 

[patdale]

Well the other guy never showed up today. I took all the spray foam and fire stop out so I could see into the wall. The one chimney strap has the chimney tilted to the one side causing the clearance issues. If the pipe came straight up there would be no issue! I will get some pics tomorrow. I'm going to stop in the store tomorrow that came out last week to see if they have any ideas on how to fix the area where the stove pipe attaches to the chimney pipe.

Or I could replace the triple pipe that it currently is, with double wall that would fix clearance issues too.

 

[patdale]

For anyone that is still curious, no one would touch the existing chimney. I'm going to move the stove to the corner of the room and do a through-the-wall installation. Will run 15' of Duratech chimney pipe.

 

[Swedishchef]

I think that is the right decision. Start with a clean slate and get it done properly.

Let us know how you make out!

Andrew