The chimney, which is also a chimney, has a wide range of materials and variations in its installation. Most of the choice is left to the owner and his personal preferences regarding certain characteristics. But consider everything in order.
Kinds
The chimney, in addition to dividing by the materials of manufacture, can also differ in its installation specifics.
The following types of pipe installation are available:
- External chimney.
- Root.
- Hidden.
- Packed.
When choosing a material for the chimney, it is also important to consider that depending on it, the approach to laying the chimney may change. So, when installing a cast-iron and steel product, the laying process will be very different from the brick one and will occur in different ways.
What determines the choice of material?
When choosing a material, you need to remember that stove heating can be removed from the house in two ways:
- Through the wall.
- Through the attic and roof of the building.
Depending on this, you must also choose the type of chimney used. External and hidden chimneys fit into the first category, while mounted and root chimneys fit the second.
Therefore, in the process of choosing products, you need to find out what the pipe will look like, in which direction it will go. And only then proceed with the selection of material.
Material selection
The most common are brick, metal and sandwich chimneys. The indisputable advantage of metal pipes is their durability, which is why they are considered one of the most common materials. Brick pipes, in turn, are easy to install and use.
Sandwich chimneys began to gain popularity only recently. However, they are considered one of the most progressive in the use of materials. Quality and ease of installation captivate customers.
There are also other types of pipes. But they are not so simple and practical to use. For example, installing ceramic will not take much time, but it requires certain skills.
Asbestos cement
In a separate category, it is necessary to distinguish asbestos-cement pipes. According to their characteristics, they are not too different from metal, but they have a much lower cost.
Among the advantages of such designs can be identified:
- Resistance to corrosion.
- Resistance to aggressive environments.
- Durability.
- Low hydraulic resistance.
- The ability to not resize when temperature changes.
Also, asbestos-cement pipes are machinable and do not freeze. Thus, this type of structure is perfect for chimneys, because it has a number of necessary characteristics and not too high cost.
Characteristics of materials
Regardless of which material your choice fell on, you need to know that for laying chimneys and chimneys only materials that have the following characteristics are suitable:
- Resistance to high temperatures.
- Ease of assembly.
- Low cost (to facilitate the replacement of a certain amount of material if necessary).
At the same time, chimney cleaning should be easy and efficient. This work needs to be done at least once a year.
Roof structure
The chimney on the roof has its own installation features, which must be followed during installation. First of all, it should be remembered that before installing any type of pipe, you need to think as much as possible about how it will fit into the interior and whether it will fit into it in principle.
When installing the chimney on the roof, you must also make sure that there are no communications above the installation site so that you can easily access the roof.
You need to make sure that in this section the foundation is as strong as possible, which will allow to avoid unnecessary troubles during the assembly process or directly use.
The main factor in the removal of the pipe to the roof is to ensure the evenness of the structure. Only in this way can maximum safety and better traction be ensured. The pipe should not be shifted in any direction.
Warming of this design can occur with basalt wool and a casing, which must be installed along the entire length of the pipe. This step is quite important if you plan to use pipes to heat the room. If you do not take care of warming, this can lead to the fact that most of the fuel will go specifically for its heating, and not for the room.
With such an installation, the following factors must be considered:
- It is necessary to install an additional box. And if installation occurs without it, there should be a large gap between the pipe and the combustible structures.
- The output design should not have joints. If the fulfillment of this condition is not possible, it is recommended to tighten the connecting places with iron clamps and do it above the roofing material.
- For masonry, it is better to use burnt brick, which can be installed both with cement and sticky clay.
- Ready-made chimneys that do not need additional tightness are convenient to use. It is enough to install such structures on the street - they are isolated and well protected. This technology has recently gained more and more popularity.
An important condition is the installation of a visor on the pipe. This step has not only an attractive appearance, but also helps to protect residents of the house from sparks or rainfall in the premises. This makes the design safer.
Stainless steel structures
Stainless steel chimneys have several advantages compared to other materials:
- They can be used for stoves or fireplaces with any type of fuel.
- They have a smooth surface, which increases the natural draft of air.
- They can be used for both internal and external chimneys.
- Fireproof.
- They have high corrosion resistance.
- Easy to install.
- Easy to clean.
- They have small dimensions and light weight.
- Easy to insert into old pipes. Thus, it is possible to modernize old structures and give them a new, more modern look.
- Durable to use. The warranty on them is at least ten years.
- They can be used near walls or any other elements of the house thanks to additional equipment.
Brick structures
Brick chimneys also vary depending on the type of installation and the outlet side of the pipe. In general, they do not have special differences from any other designs, however, they have a number of their own features:
- The product can be installed exclusively vertically.
- The height of the pipe should be at least five meters to create optimal traction.
- If the house has stove heating and a fireplace at the same time, two separate conclusions must be made for them.
- If the construction of the house is flammable, the pipes should be separated from it by special sheets.
- To prevent snow drift, it is recommended to make sure that the height of the pipe is at least half a meter above the roof itself.
- A node must be mounted at the exit point of the structure to avoid excessive moisture entering the room.
Cleaning
Why are chimneys cleaned? There are many reasons for this, among which are:
- Traction improvement. Poor draft can lead to smoke being drawn into the room and the house itself will not heat up to the right temperatures.
- Ensuring security in the case of a fireplace. If soot accumulates in the pipes , this affects the traction and many other indicators, which can subsequently lead to cracks in the structure. And then sparks begin to fly into the room. This can lead to potential fire and large-scale fire in the building.
Thus, do not ignore this operation during the operation of the chimneys. This is especially true for those rooms where wood heating is provided. Unlike coal, this material leaves much more carbon deposits. A thick soot layer forms inside the walls. Because of this, hot air cannot leave the structure, which adversely affects the operation of the boiler and interferes with the normal combustion of products in it.
To summarize
As you can already understand, chimneys have many variations, and their selection can be carried out solely on the basis of the choice of characteristics and the most convenient properties.
In the selection process, it is also important to consider the purpose of the pipes and their exit to the surface. We need to think about how they will fit into the interior, and to prevent the availability of communications over the way of their installation.
Pipe installation can be carried out in various ways. Some designs can be installed independently, while others are subject to installation exclusively by specialists because of the too complicated technique of their application.
It is also important to consider the factor of resistance to high temperatures. After all, if the material is not resistant to large temperature extremes or even just high temperatures, this can lead to the fact that soon the structure will collapse and will be unsafe to use.
The choice of material and pipe outlet should be treated as responsibly as possible. After all, later it will be difficult to adjust your choice, and the consequences in the case of low-quality material can overtake you in a fairly short period of time.
The question of the correct selection of chimneys depends entirely on the owners, because only they can know what the pipe should look like in their house, what type of construction they will choose and what its output will be.
After choosing the right material, you should not forget about pipe cleaning, which should be carried out regularly to avoid fire or smoke entering the premises. This step should not be neglected, and cleaning should be systematic - at least once every 12 months. Thus, it is possible to protect the residents of the house from the unpleasant consequences of their own negligence.