What info do I need to be armed with?

Chimney has been swept & inspected – no leaks, everything hunky dory.

Reading through posts on here, it seems that the insulation line can be a con, and unnecessary? I’m going for an under 5kw heater.

Just don’t want to get talked into stuff I don’t need really.

Ta.

Decide between cheaper and more expensive liners. Will you only burn wood, or might you want to burn coal at some time, like to keep the fire in overnight? I went for vermiculite insulation around the liner. There’s a cheaper alternative, cantrememberite. Or nothing, I suppose. I believe that if you keep the liner hotter, there will be less condensation and a better updraught. YMMV.

Under 5k when mine was installed meant no need for a wall vent IIRR.

It’ll be dearer than you’re budgeting for.

Ta, I should have mentioned, don’t want multifuel – it’ll be wood only.

It’ll be dearer than you’re budgeting for.

I’ve looked through the STW threads! I think I know insulation really isn’t needed, just not sure what the components of a basic installation are. i.e. do I simply need the stove, and the flue to the top of chimney?

Mate looked into doing his house.

Chimney had been prepped and lined a few years before he bought the house.
Was told it didn’t meet current building regs and thus relining was a requirement of the company doing the fitting, and the lining’s have a service life anyway.
Mate didn’t buy a woodburner.

I have 2 open fireplaces. I made a cover plate from 3mm plate steel for the opening, and have a short length of pipe going through and up the chimney. Easy to pull apart for cleaning, also got a gizmo to check for dangerous gases. Only a small burner.

As i understand things, to install by a fitter a woodburner it must meet all requirements of building regs. If you die in your sleep, any surviving family members can sue the fitters. So a fitter will follow the rules and building regs to the letter. Like only Corgi plumbers can fit gas boilers.

If you do it yourself, and everything checks out, go nuts, self install. You might have to remove it if you sell the property as you won’t have official paperwork to say it’s fitted in accordance with building regs.

I did it myself. If i ever sell my place i would have to remove the woodburner before sale. If the new owners wanted it, and fitted it back themselves then thats for them to arrange.

Our flue in the living room was too small, so we are in the process of sticking one in a new build sun room. All in, it’s costing us around £2800 😯

Why are we lining it if its been swept and given a good bill of health – is it a cassette stove?

Not all chimneys need lining . Good earner to say they all do though tis a good scare though ( thats not to say not all chimneys dont need lining – they have their place in chimneys that are past their service life.

Oh and what paperwork…. My stove was in when i bought it …. Zero paperwork . And no one ever questioned it.

Glad the first thing i did was rip it out as it was installed lethal utilising half a coal scuttle for a register plate and wooden surround within 3 inches of the stove all round.

Why are we lining it if its been swept and given a good bill of health

That’s my exact concern, being sold something I don’t need under scare tactics!

The chimney sweep was hetas registered, and said it was completely sound, in very good nick and passed all tests.

Hence, I want to be able to confidently say to WBS guy that “I would like you to install x,y,z” rather than being sold something I don’t need.

I’m just not sure what X,Y,Z is for a WBS installation in a sound chimney. Is it just the stove & flue? (and if so, what flue)

My stove fitter/seller said I would only need a liner if the chimney failed the smoke test. I even questioned him about advantages of having one and he still said not needed. I thought perhaps he didn’t want to get on the roof but that turned out not to be the case as they went up there to fit a cowl anyway.

Seems to be fine so far without the liner.

You may want to look into the basic regs for hearth size and clearances for your chosen stove, the fireplace may need opening up and a new hearth. We also specifically asked for an extra course of bricks or two removed from the opening to allow enough height for a stove fan.

What diameter is your chimney and what kind of stove do you want to install ?

Are you in a smoke free zone .

All of these and probably more define what you need to do ….

Trailrat
As i understand things…. with no offical bit of paper saying my installation meets building regs…..then if after i sell on and everyone pegs it from burner fumes, i could be sued because i fitted it.

Your example says it all. Regs may have changed, i don’t know, i self fitted.

I may have been subjected to scare mongering from those that want lots of money to fit one for me.

Also note worthy, i bought a set of drain rods and chimney brush, under £30 my neighbour had his chimney swept for £35 i have done mine several times and lent me rods to someone else 🙂
My chimney is too small to send a child up to sweep by hand, the good old days 🙂

Not sure on chimney diameter, I know it splits into 2 as also fire in bedroom. Just something like a Firefox 5.

Yes, smokefree zone.

Oodles of clearance for stove within fireplace.

New big-arse hearth will be fitted from local stoneplace; about £120.

I lived in a house with a non-lined flue and the Aga was a proper pain to light after a weekend away when it was warmer outside than in, filling the room with smoke due to a reverse draft. I used a non-insulated liner in a sound chimney in my current house and it only requires burning a sheet of newspaper to get the flue to draw.

My parents have that issue also edukator – their stove is a 6.5kw cassette with a liner.

I do not. I actually have too much draft in high winds. . Using no liner from a aga redfyre stove

Im fair certain that chimney diameter,path traveled , aspect and height has more bearing than lined vs unlined.

Ace im in scotland – that was only 2 years ago , infact exactly 2 years to the day today

Just finished fitting my own a few weeks ago. Lined it but didn’t use insulation as it’s a mid terrace and the chimney is on the party wall.
I understood the thinking behind lining a chimney for a stove was that some were originaly designed for open fires where alot of the heat goes up the chimney creating draw. Anyway, house is now toasty. 🙂
As for the paper work, you just get your building control guy to check everything as you go along if fitting yourself. I hear some local authorities aren’t keen on this for some reason though.

You’re probably right Trail Rat, lots of other differences between the two installations I’ve used.

slowoldgit – Member
Under 5k when mine was installed meant no need for a wall vent IIRR.

Only if you live in an older property. If your home is a new build (which are more airtight), you are required to have a minimum of 550 sq mm per kW of stove. It might not be much, but thems the rules.

Trail rat
things may differ up there, i got conflicting views down here.
Self fitted mine 5years ago, most happy with it. Chimneys in my place are well used, i think a lot of confusion comes from old buildings with unused chimneys being a bit leaky when pressed into use and conversions and new builds having to stick to building regs + any company offering a fitting service will cover themselves against being sued for a leaky chimney, wether it’s an old/new/conversion building it’s going in.

If i was to rent my flat i think i would need it certified as safe (as a gas boiler)
If i was to sell i would be taking it with me anyway on the basis i would move to somewhere with a big shed for it to live in 🙂

I should have mentioned, don’t want multifuel – it’ll be wood only.

If I were you I’d really think very long and hard about that decision. Frankly there is very little, if any, benefit to a wood only stove and having the option of burning coal is a big plus – can you really guarantee your supply of dry wood for as long as you keep the house? Think also about resale – my sister bought a house with 3 wood-only stoves and has had to replace 2 of them as she wants the option of burning coal (not done so yet in 15 months but it’s pretty much nailed on that she will in the future.
She gave me one of the stoves to use in another house and I’m going to sell it because I don’t want to be tied to wood either.

Not all chimneys need lining . Good earner to say they all do though tis a good scare though ( thats not to say not all chimneys dont need lining – they have their place in chimneys that are past their service life.

We lined a perfectly good clay liner chimney that was only 25 years old – the reason being that the adapters that connect a stove to a clay liner are pants and you end up with creosote dripping down into your stove/fireplace. Google backs this up.

Not sure on chimney diameter, I know it splits into 2 as also fire in bedroom.

It will need lining then – no question.

It’s a misconception that lining a flue is required by building regs, if the existing flue has been checked and verified as sound then a simple adaptor from the stove flue pipe into the clay liner will be sufficient

Only cause for concern would be that you say the flue splits to a fire upstairs, this will cause you grief as each solid fuel alliance should have it’s own flue and a liner won’t work as it will block the flue for the fire upstairs.

Are you sure the both fires feed into the one flue or does the chimney have two flues within it?

2 flues, apparently.

Edit: 2 pots on my chimney.

“We lined a perfectly good clay liner chimney that was only 25 years old – the reason being that the adapters that connect a stove to a clay liner are pants and you end up with creosote dripping down into your stove/fireplace. Google backs this up.”

Agree , first time i fitted mine it did the dripping thing, so i removed it and fitted it correctly , not had an issue since.

Also bear, how many pots on your chimney outside.

Ive got three fire places and three pots on the roof.

hmmmmm. Not enough information to be able to comment.
How old is the property? pre 1965 = Needs a liner, post 1965 not necessarily. but maybe…….1980’s house with 9″ liner, probably best to but not a requirement of building regs, 1970’s house with 7 1/4″ liner, assuming installed correctly (many aren’t) almost impossible to line with a 6″ liner.
Insulation is a tricky one, if the breast is on the outside wall then I would strongly recommend, outside of the cavity then def insulate or reconsider the stove installation.
The stove you choose is irrelevant, it is simply a receptacle for burning of your chosen fuel. The 3 elements to pay attention to are the the 3 f’s
Fuel, Flue and the Fool who is operating.
In usual circumstances you can get away with a sight compromise on one element but only a slight compromise.
Highly unlikely that bedroom fireplace shares a flue unless property is medieval.

Chimney checks out? Then the diameter of existing flue will be the thing that determines if you need a liner or not… Huge chimney on small appliance = poor draught, which is one to avoid.

don’t want multifuel – it’ll be wood only.

I guess if its a hobby stove and you’ve already got GCH, then that’s fine.

But, if you’re genuinely relying on the stove, get the multifuel version of the stove – the option to pick up some smokeless fuel (of whatever variety) mid way through winter is, from experience, invaluable.

Given that wood takes a couple of years to season most the people I know with a stove have several years worth of wood piled up. No Central heating or any form of heating other than the stove here.

oil back up here which is $$$ to run if i use it for sole heating source , agree with statement above about multifuel stoves.

Thats the main reason ive not lined my chimney as i need to be alot more specific about what i burn if i do.

as it is i just take out the adaptor and sweep the chimney once a year.

If you’ve had it smoke-tested by the sweep, he should have given you some idea of how good the draw is. You may get away without a liner, but you always run the risk of tar building up on the inside of the chimney.

But if your draw is OK without a liner, I’d be surprised if you need more than just a liner to draw efficiently through a stove.

Prepare for a sharp intake of breath when you see the HETAS quote, though. As for fitting it yourself , remember that your insurance probably won’t cover a chimney fire if you’ve not had it signed off by building control.

Not sure on chimney diameter, I know it splits into 2 as also fire in bedroom.

There will be two separate chimneys, they don’t split.

Our chimney is clay lined and passed both a smoke test and a pressure test.

We did, however, have it lined for the same reason as Sharkbait mentions and it makes sweeping a lot easier being an inset stove. We do also find it draws better than our neighbour’s who didn’t bother.

The reason we got it lined was for any future potential insurance issues. Didn’t want to risk not doing it

Quotes varied so get more than 1. We added on removal of fire surround, opening up fireplace back to original wall and plastering of wall all of which resulted in it still being cheaper than first quote

Well, it’s all rather academic now. 30 mins after he was due to turn up today, I rang him.

“Oh, sorry, really am – stuck on a job for another 2 hours”

He did sound flustered, and it’s got to be hard being a one man band. A phone call would have helped though. Left it with him to arrange a time that suits him.

Bloody tradesmen 😉

As with ACEHTN
Of course my place had one fitted before building regs were invented .
Insurance couldn’t give a damn. Its an old house so they take what’s there.