What is the best online source for DIY chimney liners?

[WestVirginian]

Hi everyone--

I think I've decided to install my own Stainless Steel liner, in anticipation of installing a wood stove. It will be in a 25-foot interior masonry chimney.

Any recommendations on a good online source that I could order from? I'm looking for someone who sells a good product, has great customer support (because I can be clueless at times), and has reasonable prices. I've thought about just buying one off eBay, but hesitate because of a lack of customer support if I have questions during the install.

Thanks for any information, advice, guidance, etc. Ian

 

[Sundeep Arole]

Try Bill Goudy at www.fireplaceessentials.com. Bought my liner from them, they offerred good service, but be warned - I did get creamed when the liner cap I ordered didn't work and had to be exchanged for a much bigger whole chimney crown protector type of cap. I suppose though, that will likely happen anywhere you go.

 

[pearsall]

I purchaed a liner Homesaver liner form www.hartshearth.com. They were very helpful and seemed knowlegable with the concerns that I had. Their prices are competitive and their website is good. They are a Christian company and donate % of profits to faith based stuff, and say "God Bless You" in email correspondence, but if you are clueless sometimes, maybe you need all the help you can get! Just kidding of course. Seriously, my experience with them was very positive and I would recommend them.

Chris

 

[moog5]

Try this site in Northern Ca. (Chico).

(broken link removed)

 

[wg_bent]

I purchaed a liner Homesaver liner form www.hartshearth.com. They were very helpful and seemed knowlegable with the concerns that I had. Their prices are competitive and their website is good. They are a Christian company and donate % of profits to faith based stuff, and say "God Bless You" in email correspondence, but if you are clueless sometimes, maybe you need all the help you can get! Just kidding of course. Seriously, my experience with them was very positive and I would recommend them.

Chris

Sounds similar to Obadiah's.

I purchased my woodstove and liner from Obadiah's. Duraflex liner...best price I found. Maybe gave me a break because I purchased the stove from them, but the price was something like 75.00 less than anywhere else.

 

[wahoowad]

I want to install my own liner too. Does anybody have a good picture (or link) that shows how the liner would transition into the top of my firebox? I imagine there is a blockoff plate that lets me attach the liner to the top of it (on the chimney side) and stovepipe or a tee ont he bottom side. The blockoff plate would block the difference between my existing 8 inch chimney pipe and the 6 inch liner.

Some just stuff insulation into it but I'd rather have a transition plate.

 

[moog5]

Here is a link to the Simpson Duravent installation guides. Alot of good info.

(broken link removed)

 

[hearthtools]

Why not buy from a local hearth shop so they can help you with the CORRECT liner for you needs?

 

[WestVirginian]

My preference would be to buy the liner from a local shop. But none offer prices that are competitive with online outfits. I found a 6", 30 foot complete kit online from chimneylinerdepot.com for $480 (free shipping). Cheapest local price was $723. And the products are very similar in terms of quality. I seriously considered going with a local shop, for a couple of reasons. First was that I believe in supporting local, mom and pop businesses. Second was that I'm an amateur, and may need considerable guidance during the install. But the online company I found offers phone support (they even have guys on-call on the weekends), and they have been very friendly and knowledgeable in terms of helping me decide what would work best for my specific chimney. Even if I were to buy the liner from a shop 2 miles from my house, they wouldn't provide more than phone support, unless I want to pay them another $1000 to come install it. (BTW, I live in West Virginia and the closest hearth shop that sells liners is an hour away, so I guess that technically there are no shops local to me).

Anyway, I'll let you know how it goes, and if I end up satisfied with my online experience. Liner is supposed to arrive next week.

Ian

 

[wahoowad]

People are buying woodstoves and propane stoves like crazy and my dealer (the only guy in town) can and is charging the maximum he can get for stoves, accesories and service. That's just one reason to not buy from the local bloodsucker.

 

[joedec]

I bought mine ( 6" ss single wall flex) from a friend at a wholesale level. I am amazed at the mark-ups at a retail level. Cost me less than 1/2 of the best price I could find online or retail.

 

[hearthtools]

You hit the nail on the head on WHY to buy something like Stoves and Install materials Local but if your local dealer is ripping you off then it would be best to find it elsware.

We sell Stove PARTS only on our website I refuse to sell a stove/venting to anyone out of my area even if it is just 60 miles away because We can not give them proper service or support when they are an hour + away.

That just baffles me how some dealers do things that way and rip people off.
we sell everything at sedgested list and that is an average of 35% markup not counting shiping cost to us.

 

[Obadiah]

We at Obadiah's have been serving builders and Do-it-yourselfers online since 1999. Before that we were the local installers/stove shop. I agree, if possible go with the local dealers, but just like online dealers, some are just not folks you would want to do business with. If you have a good local dealer, support them, they are there for you and will give you the personal service if you require it.
For those (like myself) who would rather do themselves so they know its done safely.......Here is a link to a bunch of You Tubes I have done on this subject to help folks get some insite as to what is involved in a Fireplace Insert Install and a Chimney Re-line. We install an Osburn 2200 and a Vermont Castings Merrimac. One install is as smooth as silk, the other is the "fireplace from hell" as the flue offsets made things difficult. These videos should be helpful even if your hiring someone else to do the install, you know what the proper way is to do this type of installtion as well as how it should all fit together. We had a customer last year that hired a local installer to put the insert they purchased from Obadiah's in and re-line the chimney. They called me because everytime they would light a fire, smoke would come out from behind the Faceplate. Upon further inspection from a diffrent installer that the first installer had peiced together scraps of liner that they had cut the excess liner off on other jobs. There were 4 joints where each 5-7'section was jammed together, first chimney cleaning the entire liner would have come apart.......so we put this together so our customers would at least have some idea of what the proper install should look like. I am also amazed at how few "Professional Installers" actually seal off the damper area around the liner so the heat does not go up the chimney....http://www.youtube.com/user/WoodyChain/videos?query=chimney++liner+installation
Hope this is helpful.

 

[paredown]

Someone on the board cautioned me when I first thought I would go DIY that I should check with my house insurance first--and sure enough, they required me to use a professional installer to do the stove/liner install, otherwise they would not maintain insurance coverage.

Not that the "professionals" did that great a job, but it is something to consider.

 

[CodyWayne718]

I bought mine off eBay for a lot less than I could find it anywhere else. 25 footer is what I ordered also, I had someone else install it though. You don't need support on your liner, you got the fine members of this site!

 

[firefighterjake]

Someone on the board cautioned me when I first thought I would go DIY that I should check with my house insurance first--and sure enough, they required me to use a professional installer to do the stove/liner install, otherwise they would not maintain insurance coverage.

Not that the "professionals" did that great a job, but it is something to consider.

Same here . . . insurance company was great to work with (no change in policy, deductible, premium, etc.) . . . but they did stipulate a professional install and an inspection from the fire department before being put into use.

 

[Obadiah]

I guess this is why when my customers ask me for a recomedation for their installation and dont have a local stove shop to deal with...(they are becoming as scarce as Hens Teeth), I tell them to "call the local fire dept and talk with the Chief. Most fire depts have contractors who are fully capable of installing a chimney system. The main diffrence, they have seen first hand the Horrors, Trama and Pain that a fire can cause. They will go that extra mile to make sure that the chimney is safely installed. If they ever did get a dispatch to that address for a fire and it was result of the chimney they installed.....they would never live that down, most firefighters I know, would rather die than loose face that way.....so my money is allways on my brothers and sister who run into the burning buildings, not away from them..... "
My experiances has been very possitive since I started making this recomendation. All installations have been perfect and the customers have been well taken care of by their firefighter contractor. Inspections also go smoother. http://www.csia.org/ is anoother great source to find installers, just type in your zip code and the site will list all the local certifde chimney pros in your area. There is also lots of useful info here for folks new to burning wood, another great source of information.
I wanted to pass on this to folks who are looking for someone to install their hearth products.

 

[firefighterjake]

I guess this is why when my customers ask me for a recomedation for their installation and dont have a local stove shop to deal with...(they are becoming as scarce as Hens Teeth), I tell them to "call the local fire dept and talk with the Chief. Most fire depts have contractors who are fully capable of installing a chimney system. The main diffrence, they have seen first hand the Horrors, Trama and Pain that a fire can cause. They will go that extra mile to make sure that the chimney is safely installed. If they ever did get a dispatch to that address for a fire and it was result of the chimney they installed.....they would never live that down, most firefighters I know, would rather die than loose face that way.....so my money is allways on my brothers and sister who run into the burning buildings, not away from them..... "
My experiances has been very possitive since I started making this recomendation. All installations have been perfect and the customers have been well taken care of by their firefighter contractor. Inspections also go smoother. http://www.csia.org/ is anoother great source to find installers, just type in your zip code and the site will list all the local certifde chimney pros in your area. There is also lots of useful info here for folks new to burning wood, another great source of information.
I wanted to pass on this to folks who are looking for someone to install their hearth products.

Good points . . . seems like chimney sweeps and firefighting often go hand in hand . . . perhaps because many of these guys have spare time with shift schedules, don't mind working up high (well some at least) and as mentioned realize that a safe install and keeping a chimney clean will help prevent a fire from happening . . . and many would much rather that they or their brothers and sisters prevent a fire rather than having to deal with a fire late some night in middle of a snow storm (since it almost always seems to be that chimney fire calls are reported late at night, in a blizzard on a slippery roof.)

And many of these guys -- at least from my personal experience -- take their jobs (both jobs) pretty seriously. Many of them are certified and affiliated with the CSIA.