woodstove flue size?

S

sageadvice

Long Time Member
Messages
11,849
There was no wood stove or Flue present when i bought my cabin a couple years ago. I just hired a guy that does this sort of thing, to help me install all what's needed. He seems to think that a 6" flue is all i need and even though the air tight used stove i'm planning to use has a 8" opening on top. A 6" with reducer, he says, will be fine. There will end up being 4 sections of 32" pipe to go from ceiling mount thru the roof to the cap.

Others say that i might get smoked out and i'd be best off going with a straight 8" flue. I notice the newer stoves are 6", i may get a new stove at some time in the future. Cost between a 6" and a 8" system is only about $150., not a big deal there either way but would prefer doing it right the first time so looking for advice from those with informed opinions. Thanks!

Joey


"It's all about knowing what your firearms practical limitations are and combining that with your own personal limitations!"
 
You Don't Run 2" DWV on a Toilet even though the Hole out the bottom of most toilets are only about that Big do ya?

I've see people reduce from 8" to 6" on Wood Stoves sage,But I sure as Hell wouldn't do it!

I sure the Hell wouldn't put a 2" Exhaust Pipe on a CUMMINS either!

Kinda like the time a Friend of Mine a few years kept calling saying his Main Drain kept plugging off after his Daughters became Teenagers!

I kept telling him there was something right at the City Main every time that wasn't right!

They Finally Dug it up right where I told him the Problem was!

Sure enough,a 4"X2" Bell right at the City Main!

He got by for Years until them Girls started throwing women items down the Hatch!

DO NOT REDUCE THAT FLUE SIZE!








This Story happens alot it's True!
But Ya Best Hope it don't ever happen to you!
 
OK, Point taken Bess yet what happens a little later when i have the opportunity to get a new or better stove and the flue on it is 6"?

Is it OK to run a 6" stove into a 8" flue and not have problems? It can't all be like a sewer system!! lol

I can afford to do the flue job but not do it and buy a new stove that i like.

Joey


"It's all about knowing what your firearms practical limitations are and combining that with your own personal limitations!"
 
Think about it sage!

Say you've got a 75,000 BTU Water Heater & the Draft Hood/Flue size is 4"!

You wouldn't reduce it to 3" would Ya?

You know what I'm sayin sage!

Just so you know!

A good Friend done the very same thing you're thinking about doing:Reducing an 8" Stove to 6",FRICKEN near Burnt his house down!

Burnt the Kitchen & part of the Living Room up but got the Fire out after the Fire Department showed up!





This Story happens alot it's True!
But Ya Best Hope it don't ever happen to you!
 
Reducing a Flue Size on any Atmospheric vented Appliance would be Breaking every Code/Rule Known to man!




This Story happens alot it's True!
But Ya Best Hope it don't ever happen to you!
 
LAST EDITED ON Jun-26-13 AT 07:57PM (MST)[p]Thanks Bess! You can't believe the varied opinions i'm getting.

I don't believe it is as super serious a problem as you are making it to be. There are hundreds of homes here that have reducers to the flue here around the lake and they all haven't burnt down. You do make some good points, noted, though a wood stove is just not the same as a propane powered water heater or a sewer system! :)

Still wondering about a 6" stove hooked to a 8" flue?

Joey


"It's all about knowing what your firearms practical limitations are and combining that with your own personal limitations!"
 
Undersizing flu vents kills people. I have dealt only with natural gas appliances though. But I have seen quite a few people go to the hospital because they wanted to save a few bucks.


I'll tell you who it was . . . it was that D@MN Sasquatch!
 
Well sage I will tell you this:

In my neck of the woods We have some of the Stiffest Building Codes in the State!

Seen it happen on a Brand New House!

The owner wasn't trying to pull anything off,just decided to jump up to the next bigger size Wood Stove,so He had to use the 8X6 Reducer,because they already had the 6" flue pipe in!

The Building Inspector Tagged the Job Right Now,didn't even Studder!

The Home owner ended up putting the smaller Stove in!




This Story happens alot it's True!
But Ya Best Hope it don't ever happen to you!
 
Well sage?

You're kinda contrdicting yourself there?

First you say an 8" Stove hooked to a 6" Flue?

Then you say hooking a 6" Stove to an 8" Flue?

Which is it???



This Story happens alot it's True!
But Ya Best Hope it don't ever happen to you!
 
All the modern stoves use 6".......except pellet stoves and they mostly use 4". If you have no elbows, there is no reason to go to 8".

We had a six foot horizontal, with 2 90 degree elbows, all 6".....in our bunkhouse for years and it did fine. Would have never passed anybody's code though.


"Being an idiot is NOT an art form. Give it up!"
 
LAST EDITED ON Jun-26-13 AT 08:32PM (MST)[p]"Then you say hooking a 6" Stove to an 8" Flue?"

Bess, I haven't bought either system yet, just gathering info and seeing if my installers recommendation is the way to go. As i said/asked above, if i put in the 8" flue now and do buy a 6" flue stove later, next year or two, will i still be able to use the 8" flue?

Earlier i called a wood stove store over in Quincy. The gal there said it was perfectly acceptable to use a reducer. I'm not saying that it is but she did...and my installer too. Pain in the rear!! :)

Nickman, Thanks, yes, it's a straight up shot, no bends.

Joey


"It's all about knowing what your firearms practical limitations are and combining that with your own personal limitations!"
 
He is looking ahead for new stove that will be a 6" flue if he puts the 8" in now, NO problem size the 6" up to the 8"

"I have found if you go the extra mile it's Never crowded".
>[Font][Font color = "green"]Life member of
>the MM green signature club.[font/]
 
see LOL

"I have found if you go the extra mile it's Never crowded".
>[Font][Font color = "green"]Life member of
>the MM green signature club.[font/]
 
Pay attention to His Original Post!

Plainly States Hooking an 8" Stove up to a 6" Flue!




This Story happens alot it's True!
But Ya Best Hope it don't ever happen to you!
 
>LAST EDITED ON Jun-26-13
>AT 08:32?PM (MST)
>
>"Then you say hooking a 6"
>Stove to an 8" Flue?"
>
>
>Bess, I haven't bought either system
>yet, just gathering info and
>seeing if my installers recommendation
>is the way to go.
>As i said/asked above, if
>i put in the 8"
>flue now and do buy
>a 6" flue stove later,
>next year or two, will
>i still be able to
>use the 8" flue?
>
>Earlier i called a wood stove
>store over in Quincy. The
>gal there said it was
>perfectly acceptable to use a
>reducer. I'm not saying that
>it is but she did...and
>my installer too. Pain in
>the rear!! :)
>
>Nickman, Thanks, yes, it's a straight
>up shot, no bends.
>
>Joey
>
>
>"It's all about knowing what your
>firearms practical limitations are and
>combining that with your own
>personal limitations!"

You can Jump up in Size(6"to 8" Increaser!)Not a Problem!

From an 8" Stove to a 6" Flue as Stated in your original Thread(8" to 6" Reducer!)Ya that's a Problem!






This Story happens alot it's True!
But Ya Best Hope it don't ever happen to you!
 
Anybody reducing a Flue Size smaller than the Appliance Flue Size is a Fool & I don't care how many Stove's He's Installed!

Now if He's Jumping up in Size that's a Different Story!




This Story happens alot it's True!
But Ya Best Hope it don't ever happen to you!
 
Bess, then WHY do they make an 8" by 6" reducer if you can't use it? Shouldn't they sell them only right-side-up and call them an "increaser"? :D
 
An Increaser is 6"to 8"!

A Reducer is 8" to 6"!

Believe it or not NVB there is a Difference!




This Story happens alot it's True!
But Ya Best Hope it don't ever happen to you!
 
Sageadvise, listen to elkassassin. Granted, sizing in determined
by the length of the rise and the number of elbows, it is a no-brainer to oversize it.
 
So it looks like i'll be buying the 8" flue system. As i mentioned, it's only about $150. more than the 6" system and if it will prevent problems down the road, well worth it.

I'm kinda surprised that more comments from those with existing reducers, working well in their flue system, didn't come forth...kinda surprised. ;-)

Thanks for the advice guys!!

Joey


"It's all about knowing what your firearms practical limitations are and combining that with your own personal limitations!"
 
With a wood burning stove it is all about draw. If you are venting out the back and through a wall I would say it's a bad idea. If you are venting straight up through the roof and you make sure you get enough pipe to get it high enough off the roof you will not have a problem. I have an 8" stove reduced to 6" pipe installed in my garage and we simply installed enough pipe straight up through the roof. Now, that thing blows more black smoke than bess's belcher! But it never blows it in the garage, drafts great and works awesome.
 
So I shouldn't add this nifty 2" chrome tail pipe to my 5" straight thru exhaust on my belcher?

Wouldn't it cause the venturi effect and actually speed up the smoke going out of the pipe causing it to draw better? ;-)
 
>So I shouldn't add this nifty
>2" chrome tail pipe to
>my 5" straight thru exhaust
>on my belcher?
>
>Wouldn't it cause the venturi effect
>and actually speed up the
>smoke going out of the
>pipe causing it to draw
>better? ;-)

Well NVB!

You could go in for a Pecker Reduction!

But I don't think Ms NVB would be very Impressed!:D

Kinda like a CUMMINS with a 2" Pipe ya know?






This Story happens alot it's True!
But Ya Best Hope it don't ever happen to you!
 
....Velocity



When you go swimming in the ocean, it is very cold, and it makes my willy small
 
Sage, I don't really know much about the size a stove pipe should be....but I know from experience that 20" logs don't fit into a 18" stove.
 
LAST EDITED ON Jun-27-13 AT 11:01AM (MST)[p]Larrbo, Hey, i'm in the market for wood. How much of that 20" stuff you got? lol

Actually, looking forward to getting out the old Stihl and cutting my own fuel. Going from being a local wood dog selling 80+ cords a year to not cutting a stick in 15 years has me weighing if or not to purchase or cut. One thing to consider, when i used to sell, price was $60-70. a cord in rounds. Now, it's more like $150.-160. I think i'll cut my own. :)

I used to get my own during deer season every year that i had a local C zone tag. I'd load up my fishing rods, hunting stuff, and chainsaw. No telling where i'd go or how much country i'd travel but i always took time to get at least half a load of wood. One year i had just loaded up a great load of clean cedar when i spotted and took a real nice 4x4. I thru him up top and don't believe i ever came into town with a better load!! :)

Alp, you got balls dude, Thanks!!

Joey


"It's all about knowing what your firearms practical limitations are and combining that with your own personal limitations!"
 
Joey. We have an eight inch stove reduced down to six in our log house. Our pipe length is probably about 30'. We don't get a very good draft unless the stove is good and hot. I thought about going to 8" pipe but it looks so much bigger I decided to talk to an HVAC contractor friend of mine. He said that the six" flue would actually draft better than an eight ". So I left it alone. Couldn't tell you if eight would draft better or not.
Good luck with whatever you decide.

Dean
 
Joey, I don't know much about any of it, but it seems as if the stove you will get has an 8" opening, I would go with the 8" pipe. If you upgrade later to a stove with 6" pipe you can adapt from 6" to 8" more efficiently than from 8" to 6". Is there any drawback from going to an 8" pipe with a 6" stove? As long as you have a damper would it matter? A bigger stove pipe might heat the house better also?

Eel

P.S My wife said if you have the option always, ALWAYS go with the 8" pipe over the 6" pipe!:)
 
6" Pipe,Pfffffffffff!

I've seen Bigger Pipe than that on a Good Runnin Diesel!:D




This Story happens alot it's True!
But Ya Best Hope it don't ever happen to you!
 
sages Installer and his 8" Stove & 6" Pipe a year down the Road!

456sagestove.jpg




This Story happens alot it's True!
But Ya Best Hope it don't ever happen to you!
 
Here's a Picture of Nicky's Stove Pipe!

9336nickysstove.jpg




Inaroundabackasidea!

GAWD you ought to see the Outside Pipe!






This Story happens alot it's True!
But Ya Best Hope it don't ever happen to you!
 
>Here's a Picture of Nicky's Stove
>Pipe!
>
>
9336nickysstove.jpg

>
>
>
>Inaroundabackasidea!
>
>GAWD you ought to see the
>Outside Pipe!
>
>
>
>
>
>
>This Story happens alot it's True!
>
>But Ya Best Hope it don't
>ever happen to you!
>



I am a Redneck.....but that is way over the top, even for me.

My Dad would have done it, and totally convinced my Mom that it was THE most heat efficient way to do it!

My cousin put in a wood stove and ran about 7 feet of pipe, at a 45 degree angle, supported by a step ladder .........I know it was there at least ten years.....in the living room!


"Being an idiot is NOT an art form. Give it up!"
 

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