HELP..Leaking Chimney

[hiskid1973]

Hi. We just bought a mobile home with a woodstove in it .The stove was old, pretty small ( you would have had to have someone cut smaller logs for the 12" door and had bad seals so I sold it real cheap..My problem is on the roof where the flashing meets the chimney. It looks like there is no kind of rain shield that went around the pipe and its leaking in ..The insulation is wet and the ceiling is bowing..I have a pic. of the thimble going thru the ceiling here: http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/hiskid1973/album?.dir=/cac0&.src=ph&.tok=phbSnWEBqvNBWyQo
There is like three different diameters and the white lid is the end of the 6" stovepipe. The square plate looks like it is just held in place by the largest ring which is slightly bigger diameter that the hole in the square plate. Is there anyway I can take this apart from the inside to get at the wet insulation without ripping the whole thing off outside...I am on disability so I cant lift much..Any ideas.. I am just going to smear some caulk around it for now and repair it and do stove shopping in the spring /summer..We're not sure if we want to do corn, pellet or wood. i can't really do much labor so we're looking for what's available in so. central Pa..Thanks..God bless..Kim

 

[webbie]

Hi. We just bought a mobile home with a woodstove in it .The stove was old, pretty small ( you would have had to have someone cut smaller logs for the 12" door and had bad seals so I sold it real cheap..My problem is on the roof where the flashing meets the chimney. It looks like there is no kind of rain shield that went around the pipe and its leaking in ..The insulation is wet and the ceiling is bowing..I have a pic. of the thimble going thru the ceiling here: http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/hiskid1973/album?.dir=/cac0&.src=ph&.tok=phbSnWEBqvNBWyQo
There is like three different diameters and the white lid is the end of the 6" stovepipe. The square plate looks like it is just held in place by the largest ring which is slightly bigger diameter that the hole in the square plate. Is there anyway I can take this apart from the inside to get at the wet insulation without ripping the whole thing off outside...I am on disability so I cant lift much..Any ideas.. I am just going to smear some caulk around it for now and repair it and do stove shopping in the spring /summer..We're not sure if we want to do corn, pellet or wood. i can't really do much labor so we're looking for what's available in so. central Pa..Thanks..God bless..Kim

There should be a flashing AND a storm collar around the pipel up on the roof. The flashing should be fastened and waterproofed to the roof and the storm collar should be snug around the pipe right above the flashing.....a bead of silicone caulk should be where the storm collar meets the pipe.

Besides any obvious holes, which can be sealed with silicone or cold tar, I have found that the Aluminum Roof Coating, which is available in one gallon containers, can do a great job sealing up leaks that were formerly unsealable. Simply stir it well and coat everything around and including the flashing!

This stuff goes into the tiny holes that we cannot see with our eyes. Any decent handyman or handy friend should be able to do this for you.

Craig

PS. some water might blow into the cap and that will come down the middle pipe. Not too much you can do about this, as it usually goes into the stove and a few drops here and there is no big deal.

 

[MountainStoveGuy]

I cant speak for the ripping out the celing, but a few questions, what kind of pipe is on the outside? where do the single wall and the exterior pipe connect? if you can pull the chimney pipe out of the roof you should be able to get to the insulation from the top. You need to install a storm collar and seal it at that point where the storm collar wraps around the pipe above the roof flashing. I dont install chimneys in your neck of the woods, but i would expect from the photo to see some of the chimney pipe inside the building where the single wall connects, i hope you dont have single wall going all the way throug the roof and the exterior. I think i see a little of the class A chimney up in that trim collar, but that should be down a bit in the room. I would not put anything back in untill you have a proffesional sweep look at it.

We posted at the same time, sorry for some of the redundant information.

 

[Homefire]

You will need to get on the roof to make this repair. I suggest you call your county social services for emergency assistance if you cannot afford to hire a contractor to make this repair.

 

[hiskid1973]

Thanks for all the quick replies..There is definitely NO storm collar, just cone shaped flashing around what I assume is the second pipe..The the third piece, the six , inch goes up all the way and has a cap on it..How is that whole collar held in place? It can't be taken apart inside... Looks like I'll pick up a ladder tommorow and have my wife put it up...I remodeled buildings before I got sick and have to get used to paying someone to do that work now..Thanks again..God Bless..kim