What About Wood Stoves?

By Author: Glen Kellogg
Total Articles: 20
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What About the Woodstove?
Woodstoves and inserts are more efficient than open fireplaces and, if properly installed, can be quite adequate. However many difficulties have been experienced, especially with poor connections between fireplace inserts and original chimney flues.

Liability (in the context of this article) is the state of being legally responsible to compensate someone for property damage or injury. Almost anyone involved in a real estate transaction could be open to potential liability. Here is an example which illustrates the issue of liability

A home is sold with a wood burning space heater. If a house fire occurs because of an inadequate installation, who is to blame? The vendor? The Realtor? What about the home inspector? What if the home inspector was able to inspect only part of the total system? What if the type of system required more tools for dismantling and testing, and considerably more time than available?

The key issue here is what the purchaser thinks he or she is getting from the parties involved.

Protect yourself, and avoid potential liability - the easy way.

A ...
... complete inspection of any wood burning appliance involves an evaluation of every part of the heating system, from the floor pad to the chimney cap. All of these parts are covered in the codes, so compliance can only be determined if every part is inspected.

The chimney is usually the most difficult part of the system to inspect properly. Chimneys which run up through the house are often inaccessible at critical points, such as ceiling and attic penetrations. In some cases, even though you can see sections of the chimney, they cannot be reached with a tape measure to confirm their clearance to combustible building materials. Flue liners are subject to cracking inside masonry chimneys, or buckling and corrosion in the case of metal chimneys. It is difficult to inspect a chimney liner unless it has just been cleaned.

Why not have a certified wood heating technician perform a thorough cleaning and inspection, before the house is listed for sale?

Most state and provincial fire codes, as well as most household insurers, require homeowners to maintain the safety of their chimneys and inspect them at least once a year. Consulting a certified chimney sweep will ensure the present and future owners' safety, and help relieve the liability issues for all parties involved.

A certified technician or chimney sweep will prepare a detailed, written report and have the homeowner sign it. He or she will make sure the homeowner understands the report, especially those areas where problems are found.

A Simple Solution:

Aside from the safety and liability issues, if a wood burning installation is disassembled, thoroughly cleaned and inspected prior to the house being listed, all parties will be aware of the physical condition of the system before an offer to purchase is presented.

There will be no surprises after the fact. Deals will not fall through because of defects discovered, or concerns raised as a result of a subsequent home inspection.

Inspection by a certified professional prior to listing can streamline and simplify the process of purchase and sale.

Stainless steel resists corrosion, maintains it's strength at high temperatures and is easily maintained. For these reasons, it is used widely in items such as automotives, home and food processing products, as well as medical and health equipment. The most common types are: 304; 316; 316Ti; 316L; 29-4C.

316TI Stainless Steel
316TI is a stainless steel alloy with a small amount of titanium added. It's make-up allows it to resist acids and the stresses of hot and cold cycles. It can be used with solid fuels (wood, coal and pellet), gas and oil. It can withstand temperatures up to 2100 degrees.

316L Stainless Steel
316L chimney liner metal is commonly found in some thicker flexible chimney liners as well as in rigid chimney liners. The titanium is left out because of the added thickness of liners made from 316L stainless steel. 316L stainless steel is acceptable for use with coal, wood, gas or oil systems.

304L Stainless Steel
304L is best for chimneys venting a wood burning appliance. This alloy is commonly found in rigid chimney liner.

The most commonly specified austenitic (chromium-nickel-stainless class), it accounts for more than half of the stainless steel produced in the world. This grade withstands ordinary corrosion in architecture, is durable in typical food processing environments and resists most chemicals.

Al 29-4C Stainless Steel
This chimney liner metal alloy is used most often when relining a masonry chimney or clay lined chimney that will vent a modern high efficiency gas or oil furnace.

It is an alloy of stainless steel that is highly resistant to corrosion. It is used for relining flues where flue gases may contain highly corrosive elements. Being that most of the heat generated by such a high efficiency appliance goes into the home, the flue gas temperatures tend to be relatively low.

Low flue gas temperature keeps moisture in the flue gases from evaporating and being eliminated up the flue. The combination of moisture in the flue gas along with other chemicals that may be inducted into the flue from the surrounding environment, such as those from chemical cleaners and laundry supplies, can contribute to a very corrosive flue gas composition.
AL29-4C is made to resist such corrosive environments over a long period of time.

For more information call :Chimney Liner Depot (8700) 943-1515
or go to http://www.chimneylinerdepot.com/
Glen Kellogg is a certified chimney professional that has single hanidly revolutionize the do it yourself chimney repair industry.