Chimney liner installation matched to the appliance below
Chimney liner installation runs a new flue, usually a stainless-steel pipe rated for the fuel, down the inside of an existing chimney so exhaust and heat stay contained. Our 227 Union Street office relines chimneys in New Bedford and the neighboring towns of Acushnet, Fairhaven and Dartmouth when a flue has no liner, a cracked one, or does not match a new boiler, stove or insert.
Old chimneys, changing fuels: why relining comes up here
Liner work is driven less by the weather than by the age of local chimneys and by what homeowners now connect to them.
A city of pre-1940 chimneys
Census estimates put more than half of New Bedford’s housing units in buildings from 1939 or earlier. Chimneys of that age may have been built before clay tile liners were standard, and tile that was installed has had a long time to crack.
Oil still heats many homes
Fuel oil heats roughly 42% of occupied homes in Acushnet and about 30% in Dartmouth, by census estimates. When one of those houses moves to gas or a new boiler, the old flue is often too large for the new equipment.
Gas exhaust is cooler and wetter
Utility gas heats most homes in New Bedford and Fairhaven. Modern gas equipment sends up a smaller, cooler stream of exhaust, and in an oversized, cold masonry flue it condenses into acidic water that attacks mortar and tile.
Housing ages, heating fuels and storm history come from the sourced notes on our community pages: New Bedford, Dartmouth, Fairhaven, Acushnet.
From camera to cap: relining a flue
A liner has to suit two things at once, the shape of the flue it travels down and the appliance it serves, so the job starts with measurements and a camera.
Scan and measure the flue
A camera run shows the inside of the flue: its height, bends, offsets, broken tile and anything blocking it. Those findings are photographed and shared with you.
Work out the right liner
Diameter, liner type and any insulation come from the appliance maker’s venting instructions and the code in force, not from how big the old chimney happens to be.
Clear a path
Soot is swept out, and loose tile shards or obstructions are removed so the new pipe can be lowered without snagging or tearing.
Lower and connect the liner
The liner goes in from the top, wrapped in insulation where the installation calls for it, and is joined at the base to the appliance connector, thimble or fireplace.
Seal and cap the top
A top plate closes the space between the new pipe and the old flue at the crown, and a cap goes over the liner to keep rain and animals out.
Check the draft
Where the appliance or fireplace can be run, the draft is tested so you know the new flue is pulling as it should.
The boiler, burner and gas piping belong to your heating contractor; our part is the liner itself, and we line up the connection with them.
A reline frequently needs a permit, and the local building official decides what is required in each town.
Situations that usually lead to relining
These are the moments when the lining of a flue most often comes into question.
- Bare brick inside the flueAn inspection camera shows plain masonry with no lining, possible in chimneys put up before tile liners were routine.
- Split or offset tilesFootage reveals tiles cracked lengthwise, chunks missing or sections that have slid out of line with each other.
- A heating change on the wayConverting from oil to gas, replacing a boiler or furnace, or hooking up a wood stove or fireplace insert.
- Damp streaks at the baseMoisture or rusty runs near the bottom of a gas-appliance flue, often because the flue is too big or too cold.
- Clay shards in the cleanoutBroken pieces of tile collecting at the foot of the chimney mean the lining higher up is coming apart.
- A stove that puffs smoke indoorsSmoke rolling into the room from a stove tied into a large old flue can come from a weak, sluggish draft.
New liner, liner repair, or more inspection first?
Relining fits a flue with no liner, a liner damaged beyond patching, or a flue that does not suit what is now connected to it. A sound liner with a few open joints may only need repair.
Ask for liner installation when
- The house is converting from oil to gas
- A new boiler, furnace or water heater is going in
- A wood stove or fireplace insert will vent through the chimney
- The flue is unlined or the tiles are badly cracked
Ask about a different page when
- A sound liner with only a few gaps at the joints: Chimney Liner Repair
- Not yet clear what the flue needs: Level 2 Chimney Inspection
- Smoke trouble in a flue that is in good shape: Downdraft repair
What shapes a relining job
No two flues take quite the same liner. These are the variables that decide how involved the work becomes.
- Height of the chimney
- A flue running up through a three-decker needs a much longer liner, and more handling on the roof, than one on a single-story cottage.
- Diameter and grade
- Venting instructions for the appliance fix the pipe diameter, the grade of stainless steel and whether insulation has to surround it.
- What is inside the old flue
- Collapsed tile, tight offsets or heavy deposits may have to be cleared before a liner can pass, which adds work before installation.
- How many appliances
- A boiler plus a water heater that each need a separate liner double the installation, unless the paperwork and code permit a shared flue.
- Permits and the heating contractor
- Permit requirements and the timing of the new appliance install both affect when the liner work can be scheduled.
No price list on this site, on purpose. Two chimneys that sound the same over the phone rarely are. Once someone from the New Bedford office has looked at yours, you get the scope in writing and decide from there.
More frames of this kind of work
Taken on Chimney Champ’s jobs and kept in the company photo library that all our locations draw on. The library holds no job addresses, so no frame here is tied to a street or a town.
See the matching gallery photosPhoto story: Fresh top courses and a metal liner cap on an older chimney
Relining questions from homeowners on the South Coast
We are moving off oil heat. Will the chimney need relining?
Quite often. A modern gas boiler or furnace pushes out a smaller, cooler and damper stream of exhaust than the oil burner it replaces, so a big old flue can be a poor match. The installer’s venting instructions and the local code settle the question, and a look inside the existing flue tells us whether it can be used as it stands.
Why do most relines use stainless steel?
Stainless pipe in the right alloy holds up against the acidic condensation that heating exhaust produces, is made in diameters that line up with appliance outlets, and can be fed down through the old flue without opening up the masonry. Cast-in-place and clay systems also exist and make sense on some chimneys; we explain which suit yours.
There is no liner in my chimney. Is it still usable?
It depends on the appliance or fireplace connected and the state of the brick, but an unlined flue is generally not regarded as safe for today’s heating equipment or for burning fires regularly. The inspection report spells out the particular risks in your chimney and the choices you have, backed by pictures taken inside the flue.
Does a stainless liner have to be wrapped in insulation?
In some installations, yes: either to keep the required clearance from combustible framing or to hold the exhaust at a temperature that drafts properly. Whether yours needs it is set by the appliance’s listing and the code in force, and that is what we work from.
Can a boiler and a water heater vent through the same liner?
Occasionally. Both sets of manufacturer instructions and the code must permit combined venting, and the pipe has to be sized for the two loads together. In plenty of houses each appliance ends up with its own run. We read the paperwork for every appliance involved before recommending either layout.
Booking, hours and general chimney questions are on the main FAQ; how a visit runs is on what to expect.
Often looked at alongside
- Chimney Liner RepairCamera-led repair of open mortar joints and limited cracking in existing clay tile flues.
- Level 2 Chimney InspectionThe closer inspection for a sale, a chimney fire or storm, or a change of heating appliance, fuel or liner.
- Chimney Camera InspectionA video scan of the flue lining from bottom to top, with stills of cracks, gaps and blockages to show you.
- Chimney InspectionA yearly check of the firebox, damper, flue and chimney top, with photographs and a plain list of findings.
Background reading
- 7 minOil Heat and the Chimney: Why Oil Flues Need Regular AttentionOil soot and moisture wear flues from the inside. What to watch for, and what changes when the oil boiler is replaced.
- 7 minThree-Decker and Two-Family Chimneys in New Bedford: What Owners Should KnowSeveral flues in one stack, gas boilers in old coal flues, tall tops in the harbor wind: how to look after a multifamily chimney.
- MapThe four places we coverNew Bedford · Dartmouth · Fairhaven · Acushnet, all from one office downtown.