Have you been on your roof and noticed that your home is in need of a chimney repair? Have you looked down into your chimney and noticed cracked flue tiles or maybe there were no tiles at all? Before you call your chimney repair man, become informed about the different options that exist.
Option 1: You can repair the chimney by rebuilding it from the ground up.
Option 2: You can reline the chimney with new concrete walls.
Option 3: You can have the chimney relined with a flexible stainless steel chimney liner. This is the most common way to repair a chimney.
Different types of metal chimney liners
Flexible Stainless Steel Chimney Liners Flexible stainless steel chimney liners are made from a relatively thin and very flexible stainless steel. They are made especially for a chimney with joggs or offsets. Because they are flexible they can "snake" themselves down most chimneys. They are an excellent choice for most repairs that require a new liner.
Rigid Stainless Steel Chimney Liners Rigid stainless steel chimney liners are made from solid sections of stainless steel pipe. The sections fit together and are used in chimneys where no joggs exist allowing for the pipe to slide down the chimney without any bending.
How to determine if a reline is needed for a chimney repair:
The chimney has missing or damaged flue tiles.
The cross sectional area of the flue of a chimney venting solid fuels with no walls exposed to the outside below the roof line is more than three times the cross-sectional area of appliance flue collar.
The cross-sectional area of the flue of a chimney venting solid fuels with one or more walls exposed to the outside below the roof line is more than two times the cross sectional area of appliance flue collar
There are hairline cracks in the flue tiles or mortar missing between the flue tiles.
The system has a history of repeated excessive creosote buildup.
Deemed necessary by the appliance manufacturer.
Before making a chimney repair with a new liner read this:
Consideration should be given to determine whether the chimney is a good candidate for relining with a stainless steel system. A thorough inspection must be made of the general condition of the chimney. Loose or deteriorated mortar and cracked or missing bricks should be repaired.
Care should be taken to locate and close any holes not being used as a thimble. The chimney should be thoroughly cleaned of tar glazed creosote, debris and other obstructions. Only one coal or wood burning appliance should be connected to a single chimney flue. Do not connect a wood burning appliance to any flue venting a gas fired appliance.
NFPA 211 requires that the chimney be at least 3 feet higher than the point where it passes through the roof and at least 2 feet higher than any part of the roof within 10 feet measured horizontally.
