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View Full Version : Can this flue be used with a wood stove?



Jon mackay
05-26-2011, 07:00 AM
The wood stove has no listing, improper floor protection, down sloping vent to the chimney.

The unit must be removed just based on the lack of listing alone.

The question is, Is this flue liner even usable with a wood burning appliance? I have yet to see this..

Garry Sorrells
05-26-2011, 07:51 AM
Jon,

Not saying that there are not problems, but ::::

Why do you state ..."The unit must be removed just based on the lack of listing alone."...

Jon mackay
05-26-2011, 07:58 AM
Jon,

Not saying that there are not problems, but ::::

Why do you state ..."The unit must be removed just based on the lack of listing alone."...

If a wood burning unit is not a listed appliance, the installation can not be verified and therefore the only verifiable safe action is removal.

Ray Norton
05-26-2011, 09:33 AM
That is not a listed liner. There is nothing right about that installation. Get it out of there before someone gets hurt or worse.

Jon mackay
05-26-2011, 09:40 AM
That is not a listed liner. There is nothing right about that installation. Get it out of there before someone gets hurt or worse.

That's what I figured, this one had nothing right about it.. At all

James Duffin
05-26-2011, 10:18 AM
That is not a listed liner. There is nothing right about that installation. Get it out of there before someone gets hurt or worse.

How do you know it is not a listed liner?

MARVIN TOWNSEN
05-26-2011, 03:41 PM
That is not a listed liner. There is nothing right about that installation. Get it out of there before someone gets hurt or worse.
AMEN, Right off the bat,at least by our codes you must have a non combustible surface which extends a minimum of 12 in beyond the fire box opening. Was the stove installed with a permit and/or inspection? Also are the chimney caps in your are required to have any type of spark protection? That sure looks like a wooded area in the background of the picture!!

Jon mackay
05-26-2011, 04:17 PM
AMEN, Right off the bat,at least by our codes you must have a non combustible surface which extends a minimum of 12 in beyond the fire box opening. Was the stove installed with a permit and/or inspection? Also are the chimney caps in your are required to have any type of spark protection? That sure looks like a wooded area in the background of the picture!!

I have no idea what the story was when it was installed.

Spark protection is not a requirement but always recommended.

MARVIN TOWNSEN
05-26-2011, 04:26 PM
The wood stove has no listing, improper floor protection, down sloping vent to the chimney.

The unit must be removed just based on the lack of listing alone.

The question is, Is this flue liner even usable with a wood burning appliance? I have yet to see this..
I hate to say this as improper as it is, it is a pretty common install in our area:eek:

Ray Norton
05-27-2011, 06:32 AM
It looks like no listed liner that I have ever seen. The installation is obviously sub standard and looks like a hodge podge of single wall pipe sections. They could always try to prove me wrong, but that isn't going to happen on this one.

Michael Gantt
05-27-2011, 08:05 AM
Are you doing a code inspection or a real estate inspection? I'm not either type of inspector, but I read this forum because I am a REAC inspection consultant - I learn a heck of a lot here, and I get a lot of good laughs. Not at you guys, but at the pictures of crazy stuff you find, like this one.

My question is this: As a code inspector, you would say it must be removed, but as a real estate inspector, wouldn't you say "I highly recommend it be removed or totally re-installed to code and property safety standards," and then let the seller and buyer settle the issue?

I apologize if this is a nit-picky semantic thing, but we all deal with nit-picky stuff every day in our work. If you are saying that you cannot as a home inspector sign a report that says "it is unsafe and violates code - I recommend removal" and walk away from it, I'd like to know that. Are you obligated to force remediation? Can you force remediation?

By the way, I totally agree it should go. I just don't think it's your decision beyond doing due diligence in informing the various parties. If that is a commonly understood thing, then I shouldn't have asked. Didn't mean to challenge you on it, I'm trying to learn something. It is a real POS installation.

John Kogel
05-27-2011, 12:30 PM
My question is this: As a code inspector, you would say it must be removed, but as a real estate inspector, wouldn't you say "I highly recommend it be removed or totally re-installed to code and property safety standards," and then let the seller and buyer settle the issue?

I'd like to know that. Are you obligated to force remediation? Can you force remediation?

By the way, I totally agree it should go. I just don't think it's your decision beyond doing due diligence in informing the various parties. In a way, you are right. I would report it as a hazardous installation, but that is just an opinion.

I would point out that the stove lacks a label, which renders it uninsurable. It is all about the insurance company these days, because that is a big part of the financing.
All wood stoves must be CSA or UL listed and have a registration # in my country at least, ditto down your way, I'm sure.
That is enough negative for a home inspector to make a judgement call, IMO.
To pass it off for 'further evaluation' is an option, and you could use soft lingo like 'highly recommend', but I would just say, "That installation will not pass a WETT or Level II inspection. Replace the woodstove with an approved unit and have a new liner installed. Then, have a Level II (WETT in Canada) inspection done".

I have a right to have an opinion, especially if my opinion is right. :D

Michael Gantt
05-27-2011, 01:56 PM
Thanks. I learn a lot here. Your business is different from mine. (But, don't worry, I'm not coming into your business!) :)

I deal with a lot of people who are in both your business and mine - home inspectors who are also REAC inspectors. The real pros in home inspecting often find the REAC standards to be very different, and often have to take off their home inspector hat when doing REAC.