We're having a new house built, and I thought I'd take the easy way out and hire a professional installer. That plan didn't work out so well, for reasons not related to the question at hand, and now we're taking over some of his initial work as a self-install. The stove is a Jotul F500. The house is two levels, with the stove on the first floor. We'll use double wall stove pipe to the first floor ceiling, where we have a round support box transitioning to Ameri-vent TLC class A. The class A runs through the second floor in a framed wooden chase, with 2" clearance at a minimum.
The question is, what is the best thing we can do once the pipe exits the roof? My plan all along had been to have the class A pipe exposed. The point where it exits the roof is within 10 feet of the ridge, so that puts us running the pipe 2 feet above ridge height. The total length of class A is 20 feet (five 4-foot sections) and there is about 6 feet sticking out above the roof (which requires a support kit, that we have). The installer, who we have decided not to work with, said that we really should be running the pipe through a 2ft square framed wooden chase, which would extend above the roof to a height around that of the ridge, with the class A sticking out above the wooden chase and a custom sheet metal cap on top of the chase. He said this would be important for draft. What I'm not understanding is that I thought the class A was pretty good at keeping the heat inside the pipe, and reading the archives here, it seems that most folks say the chase is less about function/performance and more about aesthetics.
He did say that if we didn't have a chase, we wouldn't have a way to get up to the top of the pipe to clean it. He said we could lean a ladder up against the chase, but we couldn't lean a ladder up against the bare pipe obviously. This sounds logical and a good reason to consider the chase, right?
Now that he's out of the picture, I'd be on my own to make a cap for the chase if we went that route. I have sheet metal experience and can do that, but don't really know where to start with the metal thickness or alloy. And I'm pretty sure we'd still need a roof flashing and a storm collar on top of that custom cap, based on what I'm reading in the manual.
But having spent lots of time in the manuals for the chimney system and parts, the examples don't really seem to address a wood framed chase with the class A inside. It would seem that the class A would need to stick up above the chase 3 feet, right? If that's the case, we're down to 3' of chase and 3' of pipe, which has me doubting it's worth the trouble. I'm going to try calling Hart and Cooley tomorrow to ask about this and also to clarify which shields we need (I'm thinking we need an attic insulation shield but the local store spec'd a firestop shield).
We're at a point in construction where we can do just about anything, and want to create a high-performing installation that will serve us well for the long term. Aesthetics are secondary, but I see in the manual that we are approved to paint the chimney parts black which will help mitigate any wifely concerns about the shiny pipe. I appreciate any thoughts about how to achieve these goals.
The question is, what is the best thing we can do once the pipe exits the roof? My plan all along had been to have the class A pipe exposed. The point where it exits the roof is within 10 feet of the ridge, so that puts us running the pipe 2 feet above ridge height. The total length of class A is 20 feet (five 4-foot sections) and there is about 6 feet sticking out above the roof (which requires a support kit, that we have). The installer, who we have decided not to work with, said that we really should be running the pipe through a 2ft square framed wooden chase, which would extend above the roof to a height around that of the ridge, with the class A sticking out above the wooden chase and a custom sheet metal cap on top of the chase. He said this would be important for draft. What I'm not understanding is that I thought the class A was pretty good at keeping the heat inside the pipe, and reading the archives here, it seems that most folks say the chase is less about function/performance and more about aesthetics.
He did say that if we didn't have a chase, we wouldn't have a way to get up to the top of the pipe to clean it. He said we could lean a ladder up against the chase, but we couldn't lean a ladder up against the bare pipe obviously. This sounds logical and a good reason to consider the chase, right?
Now that he's out of the picture, I'd be on my own to make a cap for the chase if we went that route. I have sheet metal experience and can do that, but don't really know where to start with the metal thickness or alloy. And I'm pretty sure we'd still need a roof flashing and a storm collar on top of that custom cap, based on what I'm reading in the manual.
But having spent lots of time in the manuals for the chimney system and parts, the examples don't really seem to address a wood framed chase with the class A inside. It would seem that the class A would need to stick up above the chase 3 feet, right? If that's the case, we're down to 3' of chase and 3' of pipe, which has me doubting it's worth the trouble. I'm going to try calling Hart and Cooley tomorrow to ask about this and also to clarify which shields we need (I'm thinking we need an attic insulation shield but the local store spec'd a firestop shield).
We're at a point in construction where we can do just about anything, and want to create a high-performing installation that will serve us well for the long term. Aesthetics are secondary, but I see in the manual that we are approved to paint the chimney parts black which will help mitigate any wifely concerns about the shiny pipe. I appreciate any thoughts about how to achieve these goals.
