Just wanted to pass along sincere thanks to Mountainstoveguy for his quick action in response to a PM I sent last month, and share my story.
We live in the mountains outside of Boulder, and in November, finally pulled the trigger on a wood insert for our living room fireplace. We used an installer (the first one on the dealer's list) who inspected our chimney and told us there was no need for a liner pipe to go up to the top. He believed that by running a short pipe out of the stove up to a fabricated sheet metal plate, that we'd have all the draft we'd need since the chimney was big.
Well, we got the stove -- a Lopi Declaration -- and were thrilled to have it installed. The stove was great from the start. That first night, I noticed a bit of a smoky smell in the house, but thought that perhaps a little smoke was what we should expect. However, a few evenings later, after setting up a long burn and going to bed, my family and I were awakened by the smoke alarms going off in the house at 5AM. The whole house smelled like hickory! After about 20 chaotic minutes, we managed to get the smoke alarms to shut off. The smell, however, would last for days. After all we'd put into this upgrade, my wife and I were frustrated and angry. I'd read about the liners on this site, and would have gladly gotten one in the first place. Anyway, later that day, I noticed that MSG lives in my area, and I emailed him. He quickly called our house and talked over the situation with my wife. He recommended another installer, who came up with a new plan -- one that cost me more $$ but ultimately solved the problem. We now have the insulated pipe running from the stove up through the entire chimney, and then to an additional 8-foot long, 4" wide exterior pipe. Kind of looks like a snorkle.
I am so thrilled with the way it has worked since then! Through the recent blizzards over the holidays and this week's windy cold snap, we have enjoyed smoke-free fires the way you're supposed to be able to with these new stoves. We have had zero problems since having this work done. It is so worth the money, I can't even put it into words. I've attached a couple pictures of the stove. We love the flush fit.
For anyone wondering whether to pony up and get the liner pipe -- do it!
Thanks again, MSG!
We live in the mountains outside of Boulder, and in November, finally pulled the trigger on a wood insert for our living room fireplace. We used an installer (the first one on the dealer's list) who inspected our chimney and told us there was no need for a liner pipe to go up to the top. He believed that by running a short pipe out of the stove up to a fabricated sheet metal plate, that we'd have all the draft we'd need since the chimney was big.
Well, we got the stove -- a Lopi Declaration -- and were thrilled to have it installed. The stove was great from the start. That first night, I noticed a bit of a smoky smell in the house, but thought that perhaps a little smoke was what we should expect. However, a few evenings later, after setting up a long burn and going to bed, my family and I were awakened by the smoke alarms going off in the house at 5AM. The whole house smelled like hickory! After about 20 chaotic minutes, we managed to get the smoke alarms to shut off. The smell, however, would last for days. After all we'd put into this upgrade, my wife and I were frustrated and angry. I'd read about the liners on this site, and would have gladly gotten one in the first place. Anyway, later that day, I noticed that MSG lives in my area, and I emailed him. He quickly called our house and talked over the situation with my wife. He recommended another installer, who came up with a new plan -- one that cost me more $$ but ultimately solved the problem. We now have the insulated pipe running from the stove up through the entire chimney, and then to an additional 8-foot long, 4" wide exterior pipe. Kind of looks like a snorkle.
I am so thrilled with the way it has worked since then! Through the recent blizzards over the holidays and this week's windy cold snap, we have enjoyed smoke-free fires the way you're supposed to be able to with these new stoves. We have had zero problems since having this work done. It is so worth the money, I can't even put it into words. I've attached a couple pictures of the stove. We love the flush fit.
For anyone wondering whether to pony up and get the liner pipe -- do it!
Thanks again, MSG!
