Stainless steel chimney crown cover

[Chimchimery]

That would mean two flue's in a new crown.?

 

[bholler]

That would mean two flue's in a new crown.?

Yeah you just cut a hole in it and seal the top plate down to the stainless. No big deal

 

[Chimchimery]

Update. With my measurements in-hand, I called Rockford Chimney Supply.

Of course, my chimney is not a square rectangle.

Width Left Side: 28-1/2"
Width Right Side: 29-5/8"

Length Front Side: 71-1/8"
Length Back Side: 70-3/8"

Distance from top of crown to top of first brick edge is 2.5"

--Rockford can make my chase according to these specific specifications above if I get two diagonal measurements. Additional cost I believe. Otherwise they would go off the largest measurements of the length and width.

IE. 1-1/8 gap Width and 3/4" Length.

So trying to decide if the gap based on these original measurements is good enough or (too much) or go for the more exact fit.

--Rockford says to add 1/4" to the length and width measurements.

--Rockford suggests going with 22 gauge stainless steel vs. the 24 gauge due to the long length.

--Rockford suggests adding 1" to the crown measurement and screw into the vertical mortar joint on the first row of bricks. Keeps the skirt from looking to long. I would order the drip edge as well so that would add 1/2 to the length (but the part you cannot screw into).

--Rockford suggested to screw in the tapcons enough so the steel isn't pulled into any gap. Said some people use a type of foam product to seal any gap so bugs and such do not go up the chase and down the flue.

As they say, "a penny for your thoughts on these specific points?"

 

[Chimchimery]

Any thoughts @fire_man? Your situation is / was so close to mine. Curious on your thoughts.

 

[Chimchimery]

"3. I drilled holes in the SS skirt so that the holes would line up with mortar. I then pre-drilled for Tapcons in the mortar. I drilled more holes than probably necessary around the skirt for extra support. I am pretty sure the skirt was already pre-drilled by Rockford but I ignored those holes if they did not line up.

Rockford apparently does not pre-drill holes anymore. They suggest three holes on each long length. At least that is what I was told by the person I talked to on the phone.

I see some people suggest drilling into the actual brick since the mortar at the top often isn't as solid as it used to be. That seems to be my case as I look at some of my vertical mortar joints. Is the process: drill the holes in the chase, place on top of the chimney and then use those chase holes as a guide to drill the holes into the mortar (or brick)?

 

[Whitenuckler]

Rockford apparently does not pre-drill holes anymore. They suggest three holes on each long length. At least that is what I was told by the person I talked to on the phone.

I see some people suggest drilling into the actual brick since the mortar at the top often isn't as solid as it used to be. That seems to be my case as I look at some of my vertical mortar joints. Is the process: drill the holes in the chase, place on top of the chimney and then use those chase holes as a guide to drill the holes into the mortar (or brick)?

Yes, mortar should never be used as a mounting location. The only reason they do is that it's easier to drill into. Preplan at least two of the holes for the stainless so you can get two screws in to hold it in place. Then you can drill the rest. If there is a large gap you might need a longer masonry bit. Use spacers if you need too. Stainless washers?

 

[Chimchimery]

That is very helpful information. Two follow-up questions?

1) Drill the rest with it semi-mounted means drilling a hole in the chase with a regular drill bit and then follow-up that hole with a masonry bit?
2) If there is a gap besides using spaces or as someone else suggested pvc pipe cut into small spaces, is it OK to fill the gap between brick and chase with a fire - resistant foam? IE. Great Stuff fire block?

 

[Whitenuckler]

That is very helpful information. Two follow-up questions?

1) Drill the rest with it semi-mounted means drilling a hole in the chase with a regular drill bit and then follow-up that hole with a masonry bit?
2) If there is a gap besides using spaces or as someone else suggested pvc pipe cut into small spaces, is it OK to fill the gap between brick and chase with a fire - resistant foam? IE. Great Stuff fire block?

Yes, if you have the cap attached then you don't have to line up the holes so you hit brick. You could preplan it all too, and drill all the holes in the stainless first before taking it up.
I don't like adding extra stuff on brick as it makes a mess. You don't need to trap moisture in there either. Hopefully the gap is small enough a bird can't get in. When I put a home made cheap caps on mine I blocked the flue first. Someday I will do something better. I had to do that on the wood side to get insurance. The side on the left was for oil.

 

[Chimchimery]

Excellent idea. I have cut my flue down so I could avoid the flue portion of the chase. But wondered about covering the opening that still exists. With that home-made cap on there, no insects or worse in my wife's eyes, roaches, would not get down into the house.

If I spend the extra $150 they will build my chase to my irregular measurements. The gap then would be quite small. Otherwise, if they go with my largest measurement, I'll have maybe a little more than an inch on one side.

IE.
Width Left Side: 28-1/2"
Width Right Side: 29-5/8"

Length Front Side: 71-1/8"
Length Back Side: 70-3/8"

IE. 1-1/8 gap Length and 3/4" Width.

So pre-drill the holes and use those holes as a guide to drill into the bricks once it is set on top.

 

[Chimchimery]

Update: This evening I will get the two diagonal measurements I need to go with a more tight fit since my length on both sides of the chimney are so different. Since my crown is a bit in the way, I'll use to pieces of angel iron against the corners and above the crown to give me the distance between the two.

Interesting development though. For almost the same price, I can get a local welder to build me a chase cover out of stainless steel. He would use 16ga instead of 22ga. About double the thickness. He would create the skirt, but there would be no drip edge or creases on the top. His price with the 16ga is $1,160. Is that a good idea or bad?

Rockford is $1,036.60 for the custom fit ($886.60 if I go with the widest measurements length and width.) Crease and drip edge included.

 

[Whitenuckler]

Update: This evening I will get the two diagonal measurements I need to go with a more tight fit since my length on both sides of the chimney are so different. Since my crown is a bit in the way, I'll use to pieces of angel iron against the corners and above the crown to give me the distance between the two.

Interesting development though. For almost the same price, I can get a local welder to build me a chase cover out of stainless steel. He would use 16ga instead of 22ga. About double the thickness. He would create the skirt, but there would be no drip edge or creases on the top. His price with the 16ga is $1,160. Is that a good idea or bad?

Rockford is $1,036.60 for the custom fit ($886.60 if I go with the widest measurements length and width.) Crease and drip edge included.

I would have the better one. The bends in the 22ga give it strength, and it sheds water properly. You could probably go without custom fit. If there is a large gap, you can roll up some stainless window screen and stuff it in.

 

[Chimchimery]

My only concern is a 1-1/4 gap (adding the recommended 1/4 allowance) I would have on one side due to the length being so different from the front to back. . That gap would show up on the one of the smaller sides (not sure which one) and I imagine would be noticeable from the ground, hanging over from the chimney.

 

[Chimchimery]

All measurements are now triple checked. I'll be ordering the chase next week or so. Pricey so I wanted to make sure the measurements were right.

There has been some discussion on this forum about the length of the skirt. Curious what the thoughts are on what appear to be the length I may need to order.

Crown is 2.5 inches and Rockwell says to add 1.0 beyond the edge of the brick. Another 1/5 for the drip edge comes out to 4". Is that going to look fine with my chimney or do I need to chip off some of the crown to make it shorter?

 

[Whitenuckler]

All measurements are now triple checked. I'll be ordering the chase next week or so. Pricey so I wanted to make sure the measurements were right.

There has been some discussion on this forum about the length of the skirt. Curious what the thoughts are on what appear to be the length I may need to order.

Crown is 2.5 inches and Rockwell says to add 1.0 beyond the edge of the brick. Another 1/5 for the drip edge comes out to 4". Is that going to look fine with my chimney or do I need to chip off some of the crown to make it shorter?

That seems to be a bit much to me. More is better, unless it is something you will be looking at all the time. Nice prep job.

 

[Chimchimery]

Sometimes I just cannot type right!

Correction on post. Crown is 2.5" and Rockwell says to add at least 1" beyond top of first brick, down. The drip edge adds a 1/2." Combined those measurements give a 4" skirt.

Thank you on the prep job. Could you clarify "a bit much to me. More is better"? I'll not look up at the chimney very often.

 

[Whitenuckler]

Sometimes I just cannot type right!

Correction on post. Crown is 2.5" and Rockwell says to add at least 1" beyond top of first brick, down. The drip edge adds a 1/2." Combined those measurements give a 4" skirt.

Thank you on the prep job. Could you clarify "a bit much to me. More is better"? I'll not look up at the chimney very often.

How far is the edge of the cover from the brick? Maybe I am not understanding the "words". They say a picture is worth a thousand words.
I meant if a drip edge extended further, it would shed water further.

 

[Chimchimery]

Since I wanted to avoid a 1-1/8" gap on the left side which would be visible from below, I opting to spend an additional $150 to get my chase custom fit to the measurements below. Rockwell would have made a fixed rectangle vs an irregular rectangle such as my chimney.

Front Side = 71.1875"
Left Side = 28.5"
Right Side = 29.625"
Back Side = 70.375"

So if I go with 3/8" extra width and 3/8" extra length (for a margin of error, Rockwell suggests 1/4"), it would be away from the brick 3/16" of an each on each of the four sides. I assume their drip edge flares out away from the brick as well.

I asked a friend to use his ChapGPT to do a rendering of these measurements.

 

[Slimdusty]

If you don't like the looks of it once installed, as in it’s too much shiny stainless sitting on top of your house, you can always get a can of spray paint and tone it down with a color that blends well with your house and chimney. If you find a suitable color it will likely be a non issue.

 

[Chimchimery]

Didn't realize spraying stainless steel was anoption, though I quick search on the Internet shows how it can be done. Guess I can set it up there and see how it looks and if it looks too much like a beacon, bring it down and spray it before actually mounting it.