Loud banging in stove pipe, chimney fire?

[Dug8498]

What type of chimney is this running through?

There is a 25 foot 6” stainless steel liner that is inside of another larger pipe. In a previous post you saw a picture and referred to it as “class A chimney” I believe.

I’ve attached the pic again. If I remove that cap and look up I can see the stainless steel liner inside the larger chimney pipe. I looked up there yesterday and the liner looked quite clean to me, almost nothing coating inside.

 

[Ludlow]

That isnt a liner. And is that concrete ceiling?

 

[Dug8498]

That isnt a liner. And is that concrete ceiling?

Right, what you can see isn’t a liner, I thought bholler referred to it as class a chimney. Inside of it, whatever it is, is a stainless steel liner. The install paperwork from this past November says they installed a stainless steel liner. When I pulled out that circular cap in the picture and stare up there is a 6” tube inside of that running vertically to the cap on the roof.

No, it’s drywall, normal ceiling. I’m sure it’s not up to code at all but it must have been when they built the house


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[bholler]

That isnt a liner. And is that concrete ceiling?

There is a liner inside the class a

 

[bholler]

Right, what you can see isn’t a liner, I thought bholler referred to it as class a chimney. Inside of it, whatever it is, is a stainless steel liner. The install paperwork from this past November says they installed a stainless steel liner. When I pulled out that circular cap in the picture and stare up there is a 6” tube inside of that running vertically to the cap on the roof.

No, it’s drywall, normal ceiling. I’m sure it’s not up to code at all but it must have been when they built the house


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If that is a drywall ceiling you need to stop using it now. There is no way that is or ever was to code. And it could be extremely dangerous. I assumed previosly that was masonry. I should not have obviously. Nice catch ludlow.

 

[Dug8498]

If that is a drywall ceiling you need to stop using it now. There is no way that is or ever was to code. And it could be extremely dangerous. I assumed previosly that was masonry. I should not have obviously. Nice catch ludlow.

Ok, I assume it is but have never gone in and touched it or anything to verify. These houses were all built with this odd setup, so Somebody signed off on this, or they simply didn’t get necessary inspections. Houses were built in early 80’s. Probably 40 houses that were built with a setup just like this

If it is drywall, is there some sort of heat shielding that I can buy and install myself?


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[Ludlow]

Well, if that is drywall touching Class A, and you hit 900 surface, I am impressed with class A pipe now more than ever. I didnt know that a liner would fit in class A pipe. Interesting.

 

[Dug8498]

Well, if that is drywall touching Class A, and you hit 900 surface, I am impressed with class A pipe now more than ever. I didnt know that a liner would fit in class A pipe. Interesting.

I get those measurements about 6-8 inches above the key damper. Temps measure quite a bit lower after the 90 degree bend above it, and then it makes another 90 degree turn to go up the chimney, not sure if that makes it any less perilous. Note. That is not where I measure temps, it’s the only pic I have on me now

Glad you guys noticed thisView attachment 232230

 

[bholler]

Ok, I assume it is but have never gone in and touched it or anything to verify. These houses were all built with this odd setup, so Somebody signed off on this, or they simply didn’t get necessary inspections. Houses were built in early 80’s. Probably 40 houses that were built with a setup just like this

If it is drywall, is there some sort of heat shielding that I can buy and install myself?


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If it is drywall that drywall needs to come out. You then need to inspect to see if you have proper clearances from that class a pipe after that you need a proper firestop to maintain 2" clearance from drywall.

 

[Dug8498]

If it is drywall that drywall needs to come out. You then need to inspect to see if you have proper clearances from that class a pipe after that you need a proper firestop to maintain 2" clearance from drywall.

Yikes, sounds expensive. Better than burning to death in our sleep though.

OK well I have a guy coming shortly to do an inspection and sweep. He is CSIA certified, so hopefully he can guide me in the right direction/ provide a quote for what you're talking about. Any idea on price range for such a project? Or are there too many variables here?

Also, the company that came and inspected this setup back in November while owned by the previous owner did not mention that any of this was unsafe during their inspection. Their paperwork only refers to an unsafe flue liner that needed a replacement due to chimney fire. They are CSIA certified. Shouldn't they have seen this/said something when they did the inspection, sweep, and installed the stainless steel liner?

On their website they state "We are current on all state and national fire safety codes, which is mandatory with the CSIA certification process."

 

[begreen]

Another speculative thought... the liner is too tightly pushed into the class A pipe and as it expands it creates a bang as tension is released when the liner moves inside.

 

[Dug8498]

Another speculative thought... the liner is too tightly pushed into the class A pipe and as it expands it creates a bang as tension is released when the liner moves inside.

Interesting idea, I like it. I will ask the guy when he comes to do the inspection if this is a possibility

 

[Ludlow]

That piece of stainless going into the class A looks pale yellow, which means it hit about 500 degrees at one time or another. It would be brown to blueish if it hit 900. Maybe try a new thermometer.

 

[Dug8498]

That piece of stainless going into the class A looks pale yellow, which means it hit about 500 degrees at one time or another. It would be brown to blueish if it hit 900. Maybe try a new thermometer.

That makes sense, I think the temps get quite a bit lower by that point. I'm only reading that high slightly above the key damper. It's a brand new condar thermometer, so hopefully it's not off.

 

[bholler]

That piece of stainless going into the class A looks pale yellow, which means it hit about 500 degrees at one time or another. It would be brown to blueish if it hit 900. Maybe try a new thermometer.

The color changes vary greatly depending on the alloy used.

 

[Dug8498]

The color changes vary greatly depending on the alloy used.

Bholler, I know you are a chimney sweep and would greatly appreciate your input on the two questions I asked previously. I just don't want them to get buried in the thread:

(1) "The company that came and inspected this setup back in November while owned by the previous owner did not mention that any of this was unsafe during their inspection. Their paperwork only refers to an unsafe flue liner that needed a replacement due to chimney fire. They are CSIA certified. Shouldn't they have seen this/said something when they did the inspection, sweep, and installed the stainless steel liner?" I'm wondering if I should be contacting them about this.

(2) You stated "If it is drywall that drywall needs to come out. You then need to inspect to see if you have proper clearances from that class a pipe after that you need a proper firestop to maintain 2" clearance from drywall." If I do this, do you have any idea of a potential price range for this kind of job or are there too many factors?

 

[bholler]

Bholler, I know you are a chimney sweep and would greatly appreciate your input on the two questions I asked previously. I just don't want them to get buried in the thread:

(1) "The company that came and inspected this setup back in November while owned by the previous owner did not mention that any of this was unsafe during their inspection. Their paperwork only refers to an unsafe flue liner that needed a replacement due to chimney fire. They are CSIA certified. Shouldn't they have seen this/said something when they did the inspection, sweep, and installed the stainless steel liner?" I'm wondering if I should be contacting them about this. The fact that they lined the class a instead of replacing with new class a raises some red flags to me from the start.

(2) You stated "If it is drywall that drywall needs to come out. You then need to inspect to see if you have proper clearances from that class a pipe after that you need a proper firestop to maintain 2" clearance from drywall." If I do this, do you have any idea of a potential price range for this kind of job or are there too many factors?

1. Yes if that is a drywall ceiling they avsolutly should have seen that. Just because they are csia certified doenst mean they are reputable and follow the professional code of ethics they should. Also just because the company advertises csia certified that doesnt mean the people they sent out were.

2 just to pull the drywall and inspect i would not expect a huge bill. If they find problems it can get expensive.

 

[Dug8498]

1. Yes if that is a drywall ceiling they avsolutly should have seen that. Just because they are csia certified doenst mean they are reputable and follow the professional code of ethics they should. Also just because the company advertises csia certified that doesnt mean the people they sent out were.

2 just to pull the drywall and inspect i would not expect a huge bill. If they find problems it can get expensive.

OK thank you. I will see what the chimney sweep coming soon says. Appreciate the catch on the drywall by you and Ludlow. My wife is pregnant and it scares that crap out of me that I've been potentially putting her at risk every time i light up the stove. I'm hoping it's not drywall; I will check when I get home, but I'm pretty sure it is.

 

[bholler]

OK thank you. I will see what the chimney sweep coming soon says. Appreciate the catch on the drywall by you and Ludlow. My wife is pregnant and it scares that crap out of me that I've been potentially putting her at risk every time i light up the stove. I'm hoping it's not drywall; I will check when I get home, but I'm pretty sure it is.

If it is drywall that doesn't nessecarily mean there are other problems but it does raise concerns.

 

[Ludlow]

If the framing is at clearance it shouldnt be very much money at all. Trimming it back and adding a firestop ring would be cheap.

 

[bholler]

If the framing is at clearance it shouldnt be very much money at all. Trimming it back and adding a firestop ring would be cheap.

Yes i agree.

 

[Dug8498]

I will provide an update when the sweep comes. Thank you


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[Kingdaddy3247]

Any updates?

 

[Dug8498]

So, here are the updates so far:

I haven’t followed all suggestions here but am Doing the best I can considering I really can’t afford to heat the house with our electric heat; so I am still burning. Both appointments I’ve had scheduled with sweeps were cancelled due to inclement weather. I’m having an awfully hard time getting them to reschedule. I did, however, call the previous sweep who did the inspection, cleaning, and installation of stainless steel pipe inside the the class a chimney last November. I also called my close friend who is a chimney sweep but who lives too far to come inspect himself. Both assured me that the setup I have is not unsafe, that the drywall ceiling is a safe distance from the stove and that the insulated class a chimney would be safe going through the drywall... so I’m not sure what to think. I’ve also gone into multiple neighbors houses to check out their setup. They’re all the same as mine and everyone has been burning wood for 30+ years, no issues.

Regarding the banging- I still hear some occasional ticking/ small popping noises coming from the chimney when the fire is running really hot and the chimney pipe thermometer is reading 500 or so, but I seem to have gotten my burning practices under much better control in terms of shutting down the air much sooner and closing the damper earlier so I haven’t seen the pipe get nearly as hot as it was getting before. I haven’t heard the same backfiring/ banging noise that I heard that night.

I really hope to get a sweep here as soon as possible and will report once they do.


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[begreen]

that the insulated class a chimney would be safe going through the drywall... so I’m not sure what to think

That is not good advice. The paper on drywall is combustible.