Installing a Flexible Stainless Steel Chimney Liner

Why should you even bother to install a liner? They aren't cheap, but their benefits definitely outweigh their cost. The liner will protect your flue system, damaged or not, from the transfer of heat in your system to nearby combustibles.

Liners also keep your masonry safe from byproducts of combustion that can be extremely corrosive and damaging to your flue system. The gases produced by combustion will actually eat away at or deteriorate the mortar located in between the flue tiles in your chimney.

Flexible Stainless Steel Chimney Liners

If your existing flue system has been deemed unsafe to burn due to cracked flue tiles, missing mortar joints, etc., then looking into a flexible stainless steel chimney liner may be beneficial. Although rigid stainless steel liners exist, chances are that you may not be able to use this type of liner for your chimney. If your chimney has even the slightest bend to it, then a rigid liner just will not go down into the chimney. Also, you must be sure to use a flexible liner if you are installing for a new woodstove insert because more often than not you are required to bend the liner a little bit to fit it to the stove correctly. Consult a professional when deciding what type of liner will work best for you.

After you purchase your liner in the correct size and material for your particular flue system, carefully remove the liner and lay it out flat on a flat surface. Be cautious, the edges of the liner can be very sharp and potentially cut you. Start by attaching the bottom termination connector. Then tighten the hose clamp, being very careful not to over-tighten it on the liner. After measuring the exact length of the chimney (from the bottom to the very top of the crown,) add twelve to eighteen inches and cut the liner using tin snips. You need to properly install the bottom termination connector.

Chimney liner insulation is necessary along the entire length of the liner. To determine the correct width of the insulation, its time for a little grade school geometry: multiply the diameter of the liner by 3.14 (pi) to get the circumference of the circle, and then add one inch to this number because a one inch overlap is necessary to properly insulate the liner. So long as the insulation will fit in the chimney it is not necessary to have this exact number, it just cannot be any less.

Lay the insulation on the ground with the foil side facing the ground and place the stainless steel liner in the middle. After the liner is wrapped, use foil tape over the seam to keep it snug. After it is secured use one long piece of tape the length of the liner as a whole to cover the seam. This continuous piece of tape will secure the insulation the best.

Wire mesh is also necessary when it comes to insulating the liner. If this was not in place then the insulation itself can be damaged when being lowered into the chimney. Make sure your mesh covers the entire length of the liner. Do not forget to encapsulate the bottom connector piece as well. Hose clamps are the best for attaching the mesh, and they are usually included in the liner kit. Use the clamps to attach the mesh to one end of the liner. Pull the mesh on the other end of the liner until it fits tightly and use the hose clamp to secure it. For safety reasons, use the same tin snips as before to cut away any extra.

Working on a roof, no matter what you are doing, takes many safety precautions. Be sure that you take all of these precautions and you have enough people to safely install the liner. You will be basically dropping the liner down through the top of the chimney and feeding it the whole way through to the bottom. It may become necessary for a rope to be tied to the bottom of the liner and someone standing inside the home pulling from the bottom. Be sure to keep the liner as centered as possible while dropping it down into the flue system. This will prevent any damage to the insulation or the liner itself.

After your liner is in the correct position, it is time to cut the top of the liner to fit correctly. Be sure to leave four extra inches showing on the outside of the flue system so that the liner is equal to the height of the crown. Hold the bottom connector in place firmly and apply silicone caulk to the top of the first terracotta flue tile or the chimney crown itself. Then, place the top plate over the liner and press it into the caulking. Tighten the connecting clamp or band around the liner to secure the liner to the top plate. Then, install your stainless steel cap by placing it over the collar of the top plate.

If you are connecting your liner to the appliance vertically, simply connect the appliance connector to the liner and bottom termination point. If you are using a vertical connection then you are finished! If you are connecting horizontally, decide upon the point where the pipe will come through the wall to connect to the tee body. Cut a hole through the insulation and mesh to indicate where the tee snout and tee will connect. Secure the snout and body of the tee using a metal band that should be attached and wraps around the tee body's backside. Insulate the snout of the tee and fill the hole around the snout with brick and mortar.

Be careful to follow any given directions for your particular flue liner, keep the edges of the stainless steel smooth and be cautious while working on the rooftop of any structure.

Copyright (c) 2009 Clay Lamb

Wood Stoves Cast Iron Verses Steel

Wood burning stoves the comparison between steel and cast iron. Steel stoves heat up quick and start giving off heat right away. When the fire in the steel stove cools down so does the stove. A cast iron wood stove can take a couple hours to heat up, but when the fire dies down the cast iron will radiate out heat for hours. When comparable sized stoves are heated and operating both generate comparable heat into your home. What we will look at is the time it takes a wood stove to heat up and the time it takes to cool down.

If you plan to purchase a wood stove and burn it 24-7 late fall till early spring either stove will heat the same. Where the heat up and cool down times play into the comparison is the home owner who burns a wood stove just a few times a week and wants to heat up a cold home quickly. Many people have cabins or cottages that the sole source of heat is a wood stove. When entering a cold cabin in the dead of winter you want heat right away verses waiting for it to heat up.

Cast iron stoves have more features like upper air controls that allow you to add more or less air into the catalytic chamber for more combustion. Lower air controls are for the fire box. Most steel stoves only have lower air controls for the fire box.

Most cast iron stoves have ash drawers. The bottom of the fire box is either a cast grate with slots for the ash to fall into the clean-out drawer or some have shaker grates. Shaker grates are controlled from the side of the stove with a special wrench type tool. Steel stoves are lined with firebrick. Most steel stoves do not have ash drawers. Ashes are removed with a shovel. As stated above steel stoves are lined with firebrick this is to help the stove hold heat. Firebrick is easily broken when logs are tossed in and from normal wear of heating and cooling. Firebricks can be replaced.

While steel stoves are welded together, cast iron stoves are held together with furnace cement. Heating the stove under normal circumstances the expanding and contracting will cause the seams to crack. After a few years of burning the cast iron stove should be broke down and all the seams re-cemented.

Both steel and cast iron stoves have gaskets around the door and glass. The rope gaskets should be replaced annually. This is minor maintenance and it keeps the stove airtight.

Cast iron stoves are available in decorator porcelain enamel colors. A word of caution the colors will darken over time after the stove is heated. If the wood stove is overheated the finish can crack. It is similar to crazing that appears on your diner plates and other ceramic pieces. If there is water on the stove clean it ASAP. If the stove is hot do not spill water on it. The enamel finish will stain and the water marks are noticeable.

A wood burning stove is a great source of heat. Wood stoves last for 15 plus years and are inexpensive to operate. Whichever wood stove you choose enjoy it!