Flue question

[jodil]

I'm pretty sure aluminum dryer venting isnt a proper material for flue venting for a gas furnace, yes? Its sad that this NEW furnace was inspected as is and approved by the local guy 6 months ago.

Also, is it required that a gas furnaces has a shut off switch? This one didnt, and I have never seen one that doesnt have at least a fuse near by.

Thanks

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[hausdok]

Hi Jodi,

Are you sure it was aluminum dryer ducting material and not a flexible stainless steel flue liner?

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

[jodil]

Originally posted by hausdok

Hi Jodi,

Are you sure it was aluminum dryer ducting material and not a flexible stainless steel flue liner?

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

No I'm not sure. How do I tell?

[John Dirks Jr]

A magnet wont stick to aluminum. That's one way to verify the difference between aluminum and steel.

I will say though, the stuff in the photo looks like aluminum. I have used that stuff to connect humidifiers before. It's 6" diameter flexible aluminum. That's what it look like anyway.

[jodil]

Ok, so if this is steel its ok? I have never seen a flue that looks like a dryer vent, so thats just my ignorance... putting magnet in toolbox...

[hausdok]

I dunno,

It kind of looks like Simson DuraFlex 316Ti to me.

Why not pick up the phone and talk to whoever installed it and find out if they used stainless steel?

OT - OF!!!

M.

[Neal Lewis]

Flexible chimney liners for gas appliances can be aluminum or stainless steel.

[jodil]

I would love to call the installer, but that happens to be an HVAC guy in town that does not take calls from us HI's....He's a real jerk.

So I guess its fine being aluminum or steel.

Ok thanks!

[Brandon Whitmore]

The disconnect for the furnace may be in the panel (lock out device).

[Jack Ahern]

Jody----------Usually the furnace will have a shut off switch for the techs safety and convenience. In the great Comm. of Mass. a separate ( in a different room) "safety" shut off switch is not required. Oil yes---gas no.[:-banghea Go Celtics[:-party]

[Phillip]

Most of the gas furnaces in my area has a simple light switch close to the furnace for its disconnect.

[Les]

magnets don't always work on stainless

[Eric B]

Neal & Jodi,

Many contractors use aluminum due to its lower cost. Reputable contractors will use stainless due to longevity and best practice - which is often (usually) more money. The acids in combustion gas will eat through aluminum in about 10 years.

[Bill Kibbel]

Originally posted by Eric B

Reputable contractors will use stainless due to longevity and best practice.... The acids in combustion gas will eat through aluminum in about 10 years.

Do you have a source to back that statement?

[Tom Raymond]

The flex pipe is being refered to as a "liner", does it actually line the masonry chimney or just dump into it? In the pic it looks like the latter in which case it's wrong. If it is a liner it needs to extend all the way to the vent termination (outside).

Tom

[Eric B]

Originally posted by inspecthistoric

Originally posted by Eric B

Reputable contractors will use stainless due to longevity and best practice.... The acids in combustion gas will eat through aluminum in about 10 years.

Do you have a source to back that statement?

Bill,

If you're looking for a code reference I don't have one off hand. But searching online will yield info from industry (Alcoa) and trades (CSIA).

Is there a flat out rejection of aluminum liners - not that I know of. But when you start to look at best practice there's quite a bit of substantial information available.

[Tom Corrigan]

Eric,

Isn't the inside of a B vent aluminum?

Tom Corrigan

[qhinspect]

Originally posted by Neal Lewis

Flexible chimney liners for gas appliances can be aluminum or stainless steel.

Around here, the heating companies install aluminum chimney liners while the chimney repair companies install the stainless steel. Both are approved for this type of installation but I agree that the stainless (less common to see around here) is a better option to go.

When looking at the chimney, there should be a metal cap installed with sheet metal covering the top of the flue. Working for a heating company many years ago, I installed many of the aluminum chimney liners.