Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Wood burner installation - flue or no flue liner?
We're looking at getting a woodburner installed and had Firkins sweep our chimney. They were very friendly and professional and said we wouldn't need a flue liner after having carried out the smoke draw test.
Yesterday I spoke to a wood burner installer who said he would only install it (without a flue liner) if we'd had further tests done and it was a requirement for him to be able to sign the hetas certificate.
I then spoke to firkins who said that the installer was correct but they are very experienced and know the houses in the area and most wood burner installers in the area including the one we are planning to go with will accept their word.
We are now wondering, if installers are happy to go with firkins word, do we need a flue liner?
Has anyone else had firkin say they don't need a flue liner (with only the smoke draw test done), and then had smoke (carbon monoxide) leakage without one?
Thanks
Rachel
Tags for Forum Posts: wood burner
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by Charlotte A on
-
I think it's also probably quite important that you are confident that carbon monoxide isn't going to be drawn back into your house, for fairly obvious reasons.
-
Permalink Reply by DavidJ on
-
We had a stove fitted last November by Mark Featley who had some good write ups on here. He said he would not fit a stove into a house of this age without lining the chimney. I looked at various debates and advice on the web - it did seem like a sensible thing to do for a number of reasons; including safety and the efficiency of the stove. It certainly works really well.
-
-
From what I have gleaned there are reasons to thinking linings are a good thing -
Our wider chimneys were designed for open fires that are lit directly underneath. The bad thing about that is that you lose most of the heat up the chimney - the good thing is that the heat from the fire directly pushes fumes and moisture up the chimney and out. Thus you are less likely to get build up of moisture and deposits in the chimney that can cause problems.
The good thing about stoves is that most of the heat stays in the room where it is wanted. The bad thing is that the heat is not there to push the fumes and moisture up and out of the chimney. This means you are far more likely to get gases condensing on the inside of the chimney - and they are not designed to cope with this. You will get deposits that might eat the mortar and will build up and drip back down into the stove.
The way to reduce this problem is to have a liner that considerably narrows the flue and produces a much stronger draught. This is good in that the fire will burn quickly and hotter - breaking up some of the nasties. The strong draught is more efficient at producing heat and will also serve to draw the fumes and moisture out of the chimney.
I can certainly vouch for the fact that the lining produces a very strong draw - fires light easily, and are very efficient at producing heat. I can't comment on the longer term stuff.
-
Permalink Reply by HBXL on
-
As far as I understand it, the flue liner isn't just to contain the exhaust gases, it also prevents the hot gases from coming into contact with the cold exterior walls of the chimney (the space between the liner and the brick chimney walls are usually filled with insulation). In an unlined chimney the exhaust can cool and condense as it passes up the chimney, causing a build-up on the walls...leading to a reduced draw, corroded brickwork and messier chimney cleaning.
© 2024 Created by Hugh.
Powered by
