Lining A Chimney With Stainless Steel – What To Know

We’ve focused on the key issues when using stainless steel liners for chimney flue lining as well as the benefits of using this material over other types available in the market today.

Whether installing a new chimney or replacing worn-out liners, stainless steel materials can be used for flue lining. These serve to preserve or protect chimney walls from corrosion and heat.

We’ll be focusing on one type of flue liner material; stainless steel.

Here is a complete guide on stainless steel chimneys.

If you’ve been drawn to the idea of having your flue lining replaced with a more appropriate material, you might want to pay close attention.

Is A Stainless Steel Chimney Liner Necessary?

Is a chimney liner necessary?

Whatever the material they’re made of, chimney flue liners serve the key function of containing byproducts of combustion and venting these out into the atmosphere.

This process protects the chimney walls from heat transfer and corrosion.

Although our focus is on steel as a flue lining material, it’s necessary to briefly identify the different types.

These include clay tile liners, cast-in-place liners, rigid liners, easy flex liners, and heavy flex liners. Now, stainless steel liners belong to the metal liner category. Also within the metal liner category are aluminum liners.

• Stainless Steel Vs Aluminum Liners

We’ve mentioned that both of these liner types are categorized under metal liners. However, each has its uses and advantages. For chimney stainless steel liners, they’re the most suitable fuels like oil and wood.

On the other hand, when your fireplace is designed for gas combustion, the best liner to install should be aluminum.

Benefits Of Using Stainless Steel Liners For Chimney

There are multiple benefits attached to the stainless steel used as a chimney lining material. These include cost-effective, chimney protection which serves as a safety layer, insulation and is easy to clean.

Other benefits include excellent use with high efficient fuel-burning appliances and general improvement in your home’s energy efficiency.

That’s not all!

Another benefit of lining your chimney with stainless steel includes easier installation. It’s necessary to expand each of these points to make them comprehensive enough.

• Cost Saving

Stainless steel chimney liners are usually circular, thus easier to clean than those having square corners. The result is a faster cleaning process which impacts chimney cleaning costs.

You’ll notice that it will cost you much less to clean a chimney liner made of stainless steel due to its nature.

This cost-saving feature of stainless steel liners impacts the general condition of your chimney. In other words, your chimney is better maintained and serves you for longer.

• Chimney Protection

A chimney usually deteriorates from the corrosive action of combustion products as well as from excess heat exposure. When installed, a stainless steel chimney lining is sealed at the top and bottom.

What results is a situation where all byproducts of combustion such as water, smoke, carbon dioxide, and creosote exit the chimney without clinging to walls.

All that potential damage that would have been caused by these combustion byproducts is put in check by installing stainless steel chimney lining.

In summary, stainless steel chimney lining is designed to be corrosion-resistant. This eliminates issues relating to leaks and the likes.

• Serving as a Safety Layer

Are stainless-steel chimney liners safe? Yes. Safety is a vital part of chimney operation.

Combustion byproducts are likely to cause all sorts of health risks when they leak. Leakages result in the inhalation of noxious gases that affects everyone.

With stainless steel chimney lining, the chance of this happening is greatly reduced.

Chimneys with no liner at all or those with missing mortar create all sorts of problems. This includes those with clay tile liners that have served many years and are due for replacement. All of these scenarios are likely to result in leaks.

Such problems can be fully addressed by lining your chimney with stainless steel. It properly contains and channels combustion products out of the chimney with zero leaks or exposure.

• Insulation

Insulation is one of the key benefits of stainless steel. While the stainless steel flue lining alone won’t insulate your chimney, it allows for easy insulation as it can be wrapped with insulation material.

Insulation is either performed before inserting the stainless steel liner or after it’s installed.

When done after insulation, dead air spaces found between the flue and stainless steel liner are filled with insulation material. This should be handled by a pro to guarantee a proper job.

So what are the benefits of liner insulation? There are several!

There’s less creosote condensation when a chimney is insulated. This action ensures that combustion gases remain hot as they move up, thus exiting the chimney without clinging to walls.

What more? Cold downdrafts are contained when the chimney isn’t in use.

Here, there’s less chance of your home’s temperature dropping rapidly due to such downdrafts. All installation procedures must be performed by a licensed chimney sweep. This enhances your chimney’s overall functionality.

• Easy to Clean

One of the common benefits obtained from stainless steel chimney liner installation is its ease of maintenance.

These liners are circular instead of the tradition for cornered flue liners. Easier and faster cleaning of a chimney liner significantly reduces the time it takes to get the job done. This also drops cleaning costs substantially.

• Compatible with High-Efficiency Fuel Burning Appliances

You have nothing to worry about if you’re making use of high-efficiency fuel-burning appliances. As expected, high-efficiency burners will normally vent out cooler gases.

These are known to readily cling or condense on chimney flues. If the flue lining isn’t made of stainless steel, then it’s likely to get corroded.

• General Improvement in a Home’s Energy Efficiency

Good draft results in better and more complete combustion in a fireplace. This enhances chimney drafts while also reducing the occurrence of cold downdrafts that lower your home’s temperature.

• Easy Installation

When it comes to easy installation, a stainless steel chimney lining comes tops. Rather than having an old flue removed before installing similar types, all that’s needed is to slip in the stainless steel lining without the need to remove the old.

So far, we’ve seen that lining a chimney with stainless steel is highly beneficial. This explains why stainless steel liners have become increasingly popular.