Chimney Liners

Why we line your existing chimney.

An existing chimney may have only its masonry duct forming the flue way, which is completely unsuitable for a stove for several reasons.

The masonry will have been absorbing moisture from the atmosphere which, unless the stove was used continuously, would never dry out. This moisture would absorb so much heat from the flue gasses that they would begin to condense which would deposit even more moisture into the masonry.

The walls of such a flue represent such a huge, unnecessary, surface that even if the masonry was dry the heat losses would cool any flue gasses to an unacceptable temperature. The walls would have a large surface area even if they were smooth but with the deterioration of the mortar that would have occurred the total surface area will have increased with voids, cracks and loose or missing masonry. The poor standard of wall surface will cause turbulence to the flow of gasses further slowing and allowing more heat to be extracted.

If you have ever tried to light a fire below an old chimney and wondered why the room filled with smoke for several hours, the above will give you the explanation.

If the chimney has a clay or salt glazed lining system it should be impervious to the effects of acids but the system was designed for open fires rather than a stove. The diameter will be bigger than many stoves require and the thermal losses through the clay to the masonry of the chimney will be large, so the problems of heat loss, tar deposits and condensation may manifest themselves as diluted tar running into the stove or appearing as dirty puddles on the hearth.

So to make the most of the fuel that you will be burning in your new stove, to protect your property, and to make the cleaning of your chimney (now a smooth bore chimney liner) quicker and less expensive a Chimney Liner is essential.

This was a beautiful country cottage. High value, lovely outlook, great interior.

A stove was installed by the house owner who thought a liner was not necessary. A HETAS registered company such as Halnaker Stoves would have completed a home survey and recommended a chimney liner be fitted.

In just two years the decor in that room was destroyed and the whole property smells of wood tar.

A short flue pipe was fitted into the chimney but you can see from this image just where it stopped and the smoke and tar deposits seeped through the traditional brick chimney.

The smell of smoke and wood tar will never be cleared from this home and the ugly stain will stay there for ever.

Fumes were escaping from the unsealed chimney into all the rooms but with a liner the smoke, vaporised tars and fumes would have been safely carried out of the house.

So when we are asked 'Is a liner necessary?' we always explain the reason why we strongly recommend one and why we fit them to 99.9% of our installations.

Halnaker Stoves expert home survey avoids the above happening and many other potential problems and we are HETAS Registered and will only install to the highest safety standards.

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