I bought a second hand wood stove for my barn shop. I will of course need a stove pipe for it. There is a lot of options available. Single, double, and triple wall, many different brands, and a huge range in price. What I can't find is a clear explanation on is what is necessary and where. Of course I dont want to spend more than i need to, but i also dont want to burn the building down. So can can somebody give me a "stovepipe for dummies" explanation? Thanks
I am not a GURU but the pipe type will depend on the building type and size.
What kind of walls do you have?
How far will the stove be from the exterior wall and will it pass through an interior wall?
How tall is the building?
How well dose the building seal up, air entering?
Do you have a chimney, if so what type and material?
Paul B
Rough version: single wall pipe inside, double-wall pipe through the wall or ceiling (with appropriate fitting), top of the pipe needs to be a certain height above the roof.
Installation may require a permit/inspection (check local regs).
This can often result in needing a lot of double-wall pipe, which is not cheap. My ex- got a free wood stove to install in her garage. By the time she estimated the cost of the double-wall pipe, she decided it was too expensive (along with other reasons) and gave the stove away.
Why double-wall pipe outside? Because you want the exhaust gases to stay hot inside the pipe so they maintain a good draft. Single wall pipe can release too much of the heat and by the time the exhaust gets to the top it can be too cool and heavy and starts to slow the draft.
In reply to Donebrokeit :
The walls are single layer wood siding boards with steel siding on the outside.
I haven't installed the stove so it can go anywhere. No interior walls.
The building is around 20-24 feet at the peak and 12-14 at the bottom of the roof.
The building is not well sealed.
I have no chimney.
In reply to gearheadmb :
You need a double wall. The reason is fresh cold air is drawn in that way and cools down the pipe so exhaust heat won't start the wood on fire.
it also provides the required air needed for the fire to burn. Without that make up air the fire will cause a slight vacuum and suck cold outside air in to replace that used to burn. Effectively defeating much of what a fire is used for.
The height of the pipe is a factor of the location of the building relative to predominant winter winds. If exiting from the side walls it needs to exceed the overhangs or carbon monoxide can re-enter the building.
If exiting from the roof it needs to be carried away. That may not require a length taller than the ridge. Remember smoke is warmer than the surrounding air and rises as it exits.
However a draft is created by the outer wall bringing fresh air in.
One bit of artistry required is the exhaust needs to exit the stove vertically but most efficient if it then goes horizontal for a distance before resuming upward movement.
The exact lengths of each is a function of what wood being burned and what stage of the burn it's in. ( starting, full flame, embers, ) Plus the difference between temps both inside the barn and outside plus other factors such as wind strength and direction
In a perfect world the fireplace would be in the center of a round building. But that location is too much of a premium to be seriously considered. Worst is up against an end wall.
As mentioned single wall inside until close to wall or ceiling and double wall from there on. You need to decide if you want to go out ceiling or wall and up. Also need to find out what regs are in yout area for how far above roof it needs to extend. When I bought my house i added another section of double wall above the roof line and it helped improve the draft by exposing it to more wind. If you go too high above roof line you may need additional support for the pipe. If building is not well sealed it will take a while to heat the space. Wood stoves are not good for quick heat but once they heat up they can do good at maintaining the heat.
Check with your home insurance agent. Wood stoves make them nervous and if not done right could result in no coverage.
This is good info. I'm going to be installing an ancient box wood stove in a semi-open outdoor kitchen and have been looking at stovepipe too. Is there a performance advantage in through wall vs through roof?
I'm no expert at all. My recent fireplace installation required a double-wall class A.
Can you find a brand/model? might be able to google a manual.
rustybugkiller said:Check with your home insurance agent. Wood stoves make them nervous and if not done right could result in no coverage.
Since this isn't in a normally occupied building I'm not sure they will care.
Unless the building has special coverage most homeowners policy don't care.
It didn't cost much to have our local fireplace store send someone out to here to make sure were all GTG when we did our fireplace upgrade. Might be worth a phonecall or two.
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