Hope everyone had a happy and safe July 4th! Now that we have reach the middle of summer, it is the time to start thinking about servicing, repairing or replacing your wood stove, pipe or gas unit. Over the spring and summer dust can get into gas units and cause the ODS to keep the gas shut down or the logs can get moved out of place and cause odor and sooting to occur. Outside gas units- Vent Free and Direct Vent- need to be inspected before use for easy operation when the temperatures finally cool down. Using an outdoor fireplace with ventfree or direct vent appliances make a 3-season porch, patio or pavillion an absolute heaven to enjoy.

Wood stoves and inserts need to be inspected periodotically for little visitors taking up residence inside pipes, liners or caps. Do not use rusty or damaged pipes and caps. Inspect now so you won’t be surprised later.

Now is the time to split-stack-store-in a shed your wood fuel. It takes time to dry out and reduce the moisture content of the wood to below 20% moisture content. If you are unsure as to the moisture level, purchase a moisture meter. They are readily available and we also sell them. Some sites tell you to leave them out in the open to let the sun and wind dry it out. To a point, that is correct BUT if it rains on it, then all that drying time is wasted. We advocate one step further by putting it in a shed that keeps it out of the direct rain but not sealed up so the air (wind) can’t get to it. Reducing moisture will keep your wood burning great and allows your wood unit and pipes a longer life. 

Replace rusty and damaged pipes. Black pipe is classified as chimney connector pipe which means it connects your wood stove to the chimney- either Class A metal pipe or a masonry chimney. If black pipe is used outdoors, it’s life is cut short and is dangerous to use. Being un-insulated, it allows the flue gasses to cool and condense inside the pipe and creosote will form. It also has to be 18 inches from combustibles and there are no components that are made for that application. The newer, efficient stoves are designed to keep more heat inside the firebox so it keeps your home warmer, which means less heated gasses in the chimney pipe. Always use the correct pipe in the correct place.

Never use pre-fab pipe as part of the chimney system for a wood stove. Wood stoves require a higher temperature-tested pipe and the pre-fab pipe will fail in a chimney fire, where temperatures can exceed 2000 degrees. Also, chimney pipes/types/components from different manufacturers or applications cannot be used together. Fittings may not connect properly (allowing heat and creosote to escape) and the ratings may not be the same. Aluminum tape cannot be used to seal loose or mis-fit connections. Aluminum has a lower melting point that 24 ga. black pipe and way below the stainless steel inside Class A chimney pipe.

While working on your system during the hot summer, always remember to hydrate! It will get hot working on the roof or in the attic so keep your water handy or work at a time when the temperatures are cooler. Always secure ladders and scaffolding to be safer.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us. We will be glad to answer them!