Warming your heart & soul........... ............with style!

The most appealing focal point in any room must be the fireplace. Be it an open fire, closed stove or roomheater, the leaping flames and glowing coals are the real heart of the home.

However, for any fire to work successfully, it must be connected to a sound chimney and correctly sized flue. The functions of a chimney are to safely remove the products of combustion from the fireplace or appliance to outside without causing danger to the occupants of the house or setting the house itself on fire. A chimney works because hot air rises and always moves from high to low pressure. Factors such as running the appliance at a very slow rate or cold air leaking into the flue, will cool the gasses and affect the performance of the chimney.

In houses built since the introduction of the 1965 Building Regulations, all flues must be built with liners during their construction. This is usually done with clay liners, which should last the life of the building. However, in houses built prior to 1965, lining was less common. Flues were usually “parged” (rendered) on the inside with lime mortar. This parging suffers attack from acids and tars produced during combustion, and gradually deteriorates. The flue is then in poor condition, often leaking fumes or tars into the walls or other parts of the building. Sadly, many houses built since 1965 suffer similar problems due to badly installed flue liners and need further attention.

Why Install A Liner?

There are a number of reasons why an old chimney may need lining.

  1. The flue is leaking smoke and fumes into other rooms or parts of the building.

  2. To stop condensates or tar seeping through the chimney walls causing staining, either inside

  or outside the building (a common problem with wood burning stoves due to lower volumes of hot

  air moving throughout the chimney in comparison with an open fire).

  3. The flue is much too large for the type of fire or appliance being used.

  4. The flue is too cold, particularly if on an outside wall, and is not drawing properly.

  5. If the chimney was built since 1965, but with the liners fitted the wrong way up, tar and condensate

  leakage may occur.

  6. The old flue surface is eroded and rough, causing frictional resistance to the flow of the gasses

  resulting in poor updraught.

  7. The chimney is not sweepable due to acess to the flue being too small.

Re-lining of a chimney solves all of the above issues making your stove perform the best it possibly can. Not to mention keeping your family and property safe and making sweeping a very clean and simple operation.