Do you need a chimney liner?

Some people feel that a chimney liner is a bit of a con, or unnecessary cost. I hope to run through the history, where the idea came from, what the real point is and whether it is still useful today.

If you have any questions please feel free to drop me a comment, and obviously: Like and Subscribe 😁

[wobby]

As a service warranty and commissioning engineer for both Rayburn and Stanley cookers and stoves I think I’m experienced enough to state that a chimney liner is essential to the safe running of a solid fuel stove. A liner keeps the flue gases hot and therefore moisture in it from condensing in the chimney this is especially important when burning wood or as in Ireland turf. If installing in an old chimney that may already be full of tar from this kind of fuel then a liner avoids the big problem of a chimney fires and in the case of wood or turf tar deposits along with water that had condensed in the chimney running down. I’ve been to many houses in Ireland where tar was running out of the soot box.

[jb]

Really enjoyed watching this. I think anyone looking at having a stove fitted has lots of questions about the liner but not many options for getting answers so thank you.

[CraigK]

One of the most refreshing faces on social media, love this bloke, says it how it is and is honest with it! Thanks mate, love this channel and your content! 🍻

[Jared_Albert]

Thanks for the great overview! Never thought of the amount more air flow in an open fireplace just clearing the smoke

[andytodd]

As a member of the
Scottish Fire And Rescue Service I've been to many fires involving stoves without liners or incorrect installation I would highly recommend using liners.. the extra heat generated by stove will ignite any wood in the area of the flue

[jopo]

Preach brother. You're good at this talking to camera thing. Do more of it.

[LucasRichardStephens]

Scandinavian cast Iron wood burners have a 370 year history at the very least. A recent study in Norway, showed that burners designed over 150 years ago burn as efficiently as many modern clean burn designs and would achieve clean burn status. Many house holders don't know enough about how to use their wood burner correctly. I noticed that your fire is not making much smoke at all and that is the real aim; burn all the fuel and there won't be much trouble with the chimney. I don't have a liner in my chimney and I have thought of re-lining in the way you described for concrete, but with clay (which has been done here in Norway for generations). Interesting post, thanks for sharing your thoughts.

[PortlandFireplaceandChimneyInc]

Superb. Perfectly articulated education.
I never high pressure sell.
I give them a proper education and the time they deserve. I allow them to make a well educated decision of fitting a liner. And I only use premium liners that withstand the acids. I always insulate for optimal performance. I'd love to collaborate with you on an educational video in the future. I am a second generation specialist and I feel we have effective communication. This is because our family took the time to educate us well. To serve others well. Not all sweeps are blessed with a loving father to answer all our stupid questions. Now we must extend our knowledge to others so everyone will be safe and warm as they study in front of the flame.

[andrewstafford-jones]

Nice explanation, I was unaware of the tar leakage or the acid problem (caused by sulphur in the coal making sulphuric acid).
I believe that a standard vitreous clay liner will be unaffected by the problems above but but due to the large mass the cooling effect will cause condensation and tar/creosote formation.
I have always installed liners with vermiculite loose fill to enable fast flue temperature rise and better air flow but was always concerned that I was losing some heating effect and heat recovery from the chimney breast and surrounding masonry that is very useful in providing background heat to upstairs areas.

[leonbwr]

i have an 11m high chimney, it used to be mild steel when i bought the place. it was almost impossible to get it to start drawing as the cold air was 'falling' down all the time. when you opened the stove before it was lit, it felt almost like a gale coming down there. OK i exaggerate, but you could feel the cold airflow on your face. I then replace it with a stainless steel lined chimney and the difference is unbelievable. it draws straight away. my vote is definitely for a lined chimney.

[woollywhippet]

I tried without a liner and after two weeks I started to get an acrid smell in my loft conversion room where the existing 9” brick flue went through. With the smell came the dampness too. It doesn’t matter how dry your fuel is, there will always be moisture in the air that contributes to the oxidation process. 9” brick flues were designed for open fires that have the opposite efficiency throughput and output. Many people get away with this because they have a unused loft space and don’t notice what is happening. The condensation process still occurs but is less noticeable because of the increased ventilation in the loft space.

[izzzzzz]

I'm considering getting a chimney liner because of the creosote that often drips down after (i assume) condensation forms from the upper parts of the chimney being so cold. Really, i want to knock the entire chimney down as it pulls so much cold into the house. It really needs around 3M of uninsulated flue pipe to help heat the house and then insulated flue pipe for the loft and outdoor section.
I've had all sorts of blockages and burned all sorts of wood but i try to run a brush through it 2 or 3 times a year. Concrete block chimney from 2nd floor floor with a flue pipe down to the fire on the ground floor.
My fast clean is to go to the roof and drop a rope and carabineer down till it pops out in the stove. I attach the brush close the door and all air vents into the stove then go back to the roof and pull it through. I do this 2 or 3 times and sweep all the crap out while wearing a mask and running a vacuum from outside with a long pipe to around the stove (trying to catch any fine dust that might be in the air from the process).
Really. This video should be "why you want to 100% remove your chimney and replace it with stove pipe"

[CliffordRutley]

Yup shoving things down people's throats does make them suspicious these days. Which is probably a good thing considering the type of people who seek power. So thanks for explaining this with the respect that adults deserve.

[tonyrobinson]

Just had a new stove fitted last week, The excellent fitters put a 5" liner down our old 6" liner job done!

[DanishSpeakerChannel]

my house was built in 1952 and a boiler was also set up in the basement to burn coal but the owners back then quickly realized that the chimney got clogged too often with tar, and so in 1953 a pumice liner was put in the chimney, the brand was isokern and in fact the new smaller pumice liner that got installed here in the mid 2000s to replace the old big liner is also from isokern!! the old liner worked fine but since the big old boiler was scrapped there was no need for a big chimney liner anymore as the new liner is much smaller at 160mm instead of 250mm as the old one most likely was

[eadjh]

Hi. We are thinking for next year of having a wood burner installed in our fireplace, and this video has given us food for thought! My main concern is looking at your fire set and ours would be actually in the fire place would not all the heat go up the chimney rather than warming the actual room it’s in? We can see with your setup you have a flue pipe in your room that would obviously get hot and give off quite a bit of heat! Whereas ours the heat would maybe go straight up the chimney!
Great video and we did enjoy the whys and wherefores ! Thanks for sharing! 👍👍

[willmoore]

It's a no brainer. YES. Essential unless you like risking burning chimneys/houses. I own and installed my wood log burner where I live in rural France. Cheers for the video, enjoyable.

[djones-npik]

Houses like mine built around 1910 had fireplaces in most rooms, even the ones that weren't used often you needed to clean as the mortar degraded. Soot from the coal fires contains acid which ate into the joints even more snd eventually caused damage to the chimney stacks which had to be repaired. After 50 years of use bricks were very loose. Liners were a must when replacing an open coal fire with a gas back boiler.

[frederickwoof]

A good addition to any setup, is a thermometer on the fire flue outlet.

[douglastodd]

standard Coal Fires never had Liners, they were introduced to allow gases from Gas Fires /Back Boilers to vent quicker using the cross wind to suck any gases into the atmosphere