In Need of a Chimney Flue Liner?
Proper installation of rigid chimney flue liners and stainless steel flex chimney liners is critical; insulation is also highly recommended and is possibly required in your local code.
- The liner protects the house from heat transfer to combustibles. In the NBS tests, unlined chimneys allowed heat to move through the chimney so rapidly that the adjacent woodwork caught fire in only 3 1/2 hours.
- Liners protect the masonry from the corrosive byproducts of combustion. In the tests it was determined that if the flue gases were allowed to penetrate to the brick and mortar, the result would be a reduction in the usable life of the chimney. The flue gases are acidic in nature and literally eat away at the mortar joints from inside the chimney. As the mortar joints erode, heat transfers more rapidly to the nearby combustibles and dangerous gases such as carbon monoxide can leak into the living areas of the home.
- Liners provide a correctly sized flue and make it possible to optimize the efficiency of appliances, remember the fuel source & heating unit will determine what size your flue should be. The existing flue in does not necessarily determine the liner you require. Your chimney was likely built for venting based on a heating unit that may no longer be used in that chimney space. More often, your chimney was built to the size of what ever it was originally used in conjunctio n with, years ago. For example if you have a masonry fireplace and now you are planning on using that chimney for a wood burning stove. The current flue size of the chimney will most likely be to big for the wood stove, it was built to specifications of the original brick fireplace, not a wood burning stove with a 6 or 8 inch exhuast. Modern wood stoves, fireplace inserts, pellet stoves, gas furnaces, wood boilers, & oil furnaces all require a correctly sized flue to operate properly. The chimney is responsible for, not only allowing the products of combustion a passage way out of the house, but also the draft generated by the chimney supplies combustion air to the appliance. An incorrectly sized flue can lead to excessive creosote buildup in wood burning stoves, and the production of corrosive acids and carbon monoxide with conventional fuels.
- Liners provide a correctly sized flue and make it possible to optimize the efficiency of appliances, remember the fuel source & heating unit will determine what size your flue should be. The existing flue in does not necessarily determine the liner you require. Your chimney was likely built for venting based on a heating unit that may no longer be used in that chimney space. More often, your chimney was built to the size of what ever it was originally used in conjunction with, years ago. For example if you have a masonry fireplace and now you are planning on using that chimney for a wood burning stove. The current flue size of the chimney will most likely be to big for the wood stove, it was built to specifications of the original brick fireplace, not a wood burning stove with a 6 or 8 inch exhuast. Modern wood stoves, fireplace inserts, pellet stoves, gas furnaces, wood boilers, & oil furnaces all require a correctly sized flue to operate properly. The chimney is responsible for, not only allowing the products of combustion a passage way out of the house, but also the draft generated by the chimney supplies combustion air to the appliance. An incorrectly sized flue can lead to excessive creosote buildup in wood burning stoves, and the production of corrosive acids and carbon monoxide with conventional fuels.
- While most replacement chimney liners are installed by pulling up from the top of the chimney, some require you to pull the liner down from below. Sometimes the liner needs a little coaxing, and we may have to play with it depending on the pathway in your flue. We have specialty tools specifically designed for these circumstances.
- It is critical to make sure the chimney has been cleared of all debris before installing the liner.