To T or not to T, that is the question

[tiber]

Alright now I just need to sell the wife on the woodstove investment and we're golden.

The Lowes up here (like a Home Depot or other home improvement store) has a Chimney Kit on sale for $188 (trim pieces, attic kit), and the 3 ft sections of pipe for $80-ish a piece. Which is about what they need to be to get me interested. This is all supervent Class A pipe, along with stove pipe sections.

Suddenly, having a chimney for $500 or so is well within reach. I had originally posted $1000 as my magic buy in number but with a kit from lowes I can get that halved. The new question is should I T the stovepipe or is any advantage in "easy cleaning" mitigated by going straight up and out the roof? I've figured out where in my house I can hang the stovepipe to go straight up, through a closet on the second floor, and then through the attic and out the top.

EDIT: 3 foot sections - they don't make a four foot class A for this brand.

 

[Fsappo]

I like straight up for performance reasons. If your doing an epa certified stove cleaning should be minimal anyhow

 

[snowtime]

I like straight up also. Can you get to the roof for clean out? If so thats the way as there will not be as much mess in the house.
If the roof is a real problem then you could do what I did. I set up a pulley system in the upstairs "closet" to pull the stove pipe apart. This way I clean up and down from the closet keeping most of the mess in the "closet". You need telescoping pipe above the stove and you will be removing 1 or 2 sections of pipe in the closet. I have the pipe set on blocks in the closet and just remove them to separate the chimney enough to take out pipe. The pulleys are to bring the pipe back together.

This is all because we do not want any serious mess downstairs and I have a 12-12 roof. We have serious snow here and I wanted to be able to clean the pipe any time. It is more work than just going up on a chimney and cleaning so roof cleaning is the first preferred option.

 

[tiber]

I like straight up for performance reasons. If your doing an epa certified stove cleaning should be minimal anyhow

Yeah my job just announced an "employee discount" with Lowes. It's only 5%, but that combined with the tax credit combined with their 2200sqft Summers Heat stove is pretty much what I'm shooting for. The only thing which marginally pisses me off is the via through a ceiling-to-floor isn't stocked at lowes for whatever reason. They have everything BUT the via.

Irony in action - there's a SELKIRK banner ad on this site but they don't mention lowes nor do they have any local dealers. Anyone have a link to the supervent through-the-wall thimble?

Also telescoping pipe section - good idea!

 

[LLigetfa]

Forget thimbles and Tees. GO straight up through the ceiling. Warmer chimney, better draft, cleaner, less risk of chimney fire, easy cleaning if roof access is available.

 

[tiber]

Forget thimbles and Tees. GO straight up through the ceiling. Warmer chimney, better draft, cleaner, less risk of chimney fire, easy cleaning if roof access is available.

Yes but then how to I traverse the floor?

My house (as the current plan is) goes:
SKY
Attic
Bedroom
Livingroom

How do we connect the livingroom to the sky? Surely it can't be up to code to simply cut an appropriately sized hole between the livingroom ceiling and the bedroom floor and shove a class A pipe in there? Am I overthinking it?

 

[Pagey]

That's how mine is done. There will be a cut out in the ceiling between your ceiling/floor joists where a support box will be framed in. Inside the support box will go a special piece that will allow you to transition from stove pipe to Class A. Then you'll have Class A in the upstairs living space (must have 2" clearances all around it, and it must be framed up and boxed in). Then you'll have another hole in the upstairs ceiling with a radiation/insulation shield to maintain the 2" clearance as you pass through the attic. Then a final hole in the roof where the Class A will exit.

Downstairs with support box in ceiling:

Closeup of support box where stove pipe adapter allows transition to Class A upstairs:

Coming up through the living space:

Going into the attic with the radiation shield:

 

[tiber]

Thanks for the pics - a picture is worth a thousand BTU. Or something...

Can I mix and match parts? The Lowes/selkirk system doesn't have those boxes.

It does have a stovepipe to class A adaptor, but then I need the box that goes class A to class A through the second story ceiling. If they're all the same, this is a slam dunk (until I break all my roofing shingles).

 

[Pagey]

I think all the parts necessary are usually sold in a kit which includes the Class A to stove pipe adapter, ceiling support (mine is actually the cathedral ceiling support box for some reason, not sure why), a radiation/insulation shield, storm collar, rain cap, etc.

Check here for more info http://www.selkirkcorp.com/supervent/lowes/planners/supervent/index.asp

Here's an animated Flash guide http://www.selkirkcorp.com/Flash-Installation-Guide/english/supervent/supervent.swf