Installing liner - real life tolerance suggestions needed

[rydaddy]

Getting closer to pulling the trigger on a new stove for my basement. The flue I have available is 8"x13" O.D. It is currently venting my H20 heater. I'm going to switch to a direct vent H2O. Do anyone have any hands-on experience of putting a 7" or 6" liner down an 8"x13" flue. Seems like even a 6" would get some resistance. I have not installed a liner before but feel pretty comfortable with all of the steps. I also have no idea what it looks like inside the "base" of the chimney. Will dig into that after the H2O is moved.

I'm fairly certain but not positive that I may be able to use rigid liner. I know from a creasote standpoint the rigid liner is supposedly better. Never having done it I am torn between what is easier for a novice to actually install.

I have not given it an exact measurement, but this liner will be about 30' length. I am also considering some stoves that use 8" liners.

 

[rydaddy]

Just noticed one of the on-line retailers offers the liners in different size rectangles. I'm guessing that would help with getting the appopriate size flue inside the rectangular space I have available. It does not list a cost for this "service" of having the liner "rectangulized". Yes I made that word up.

 

[alfrehner]

I just got done installing a 6"x 30' liner yesterday into a clay liner that measured 7"x11" ID. It was a bear to say the least. It took me a week to do it. I got it all but 6 feet in and it got stuck and I spent the rest of the week coming up with ideas to get the rest of the way in. After a winch, scraped up arms, and a sore throat, I finally got it. If I was to do it again, I would definitely go smaller or ovalized. It was not worth the headache that it caused me. So be sure to that whatever you do that the darn thing fits before you buy it. I also had a little jog in the chimney that didn't help matters out. If yours is a straight shot, maybe you'll have better luck. Good Luck

 

[Wet1]

Use an oval liner.

 

[rydaddy]

Thanks gentlemen. I'm leaning towards spending the extra money on the ovalized and/or rectangle liner. Just didn't want to spend the extra $ just because it was an option. Something tells me it will save me a bunch of 4 letter words.

 

[gibson]

I installed my liner in the exact same application earlier this year. An ovalized liner would be ideal if the upcharge is not too prohibitive. What we did was ovalize the last few feet which worked well. I did not insulate my liner as I assumed, probably correctly, that it would have been too tight and a real nightmare. Jotul has a nice pull down adapter which we tied some thin rope to and were able to pull down and push from the top. It was a challenging job but we did it. The beers sure did taste good after we finished. Tools needed: Good flashlight, cordless drill, sheet metal screws, sawzall (if you need to take out the damper), rope (thinner than clothes line), tape measure, etc. You can do it if you can handle other household projects. Good luck.

 

[Shari]

I installed my liner in the exact same application earlier this year. An ovalized liner would be ideal if the upcharge is not too prohibitive. What we did was ovalize the last few feet which worked well. I did not insulate my liner as I assumed, probably correctly, that it would have been too tight and a real nightmare. Jotul has a nice pull down adapter which we tied some thin rope to and were able to pull down and push from the top. It was a challenging job but we did it. The beers sure did taste good after we finished. Tools needed: Good flashlight, cordless drill, sheet metal screws, sawzall (if you need to take out the damper), rope (thinner than clothes line), tape measure, etc. You can do it if you can handle other household projects. Good luck.

Mitch,

Could you post a photo fo this "Jotul tool" you mentioned? Hopefully we will be installing our stove sometime in the next two weeks or so.

Shari