register plate/chimney/alarm question

wrightk

After reading this thread with interest a couple of issues have come up after a little bit of investigation. i must first say that the stove was here when we moved in and its maintained by the council. we moved in about 6 months ago now and love the stove. couple of questions though. the sweep said it was swept before we moved in, ive looked through the inspection plate which sits directly above the stove on the wall and the space is clogged full of soot (im not sure how much soot is acceptable if its been swept 6 months ago).

The flue from the stove goes vertically up for about a foot, then 45 degree bend and vertically up again. where it goes through the hole, there is wood covering what is the hole up to the chimney, painted white. it gets quite hot when the stove is going. just wondering whether this was right or not.

Also im not even sure by looking through the inspection plate whether the chimney has been lined or not, i can provide some pictures if necessary.

Also there are no carbon monoxide alarms in the house. i bought one and have it in the kitchen (where the stove is). Just wondering where the best place to put it is permanantly.

Obviously i dont want to ask for unnecessary works from the council, but just a little worried as of course winter is on its way an d the stove will be on pretty much constantly, and just want to make sure us and the kids are safe throughout the colder months

wrightk

edit: the flue doesnt go up vertically to start off with it goes diagonally with a bend at the end of this section then vertically up

wintergirl

Hi.
I'm sure people will be along soon with much more knowledge about this than I have, but for my two pence worth - I'd say that the wooden section you talk of is a definate no, no. It sounds like you're describing the registration plate, which should be metal.
Also, its a requirement that the stove has a CO2 fitted in the same room its in. You shouldn't have to buy one, if the stove belongs to the council, then they should have provided it.
Re the soot. I take it you've not used it at all/ very much over the summer months? (IE since it was swept) If thats the case, I wouldn't expect there to be as much soot about as you say.

suisidevw

Or it could be fireboard?

I don't think it's a requirement that an 'old' stove needs a C02 detector retrofitted. It is however correct that a new install should have a C02 detector.

alleycat`

suisidevw wrote: »

Or it could be fireboard?

I don't think it's a requirement that an 'old' stove needs a C02 detector retrofitted. It is however correct that a new install should have a C02 detector.

Agree it could be fireboard and not wood.

As to the other part:-

It is a CO monitor.
CO2 is Carbon Dioxide which is, among other things, a by product of you breathing in and out.
CO is Carbon Monoxide, which among other things, is a by product of incorrect burning of fuel.

The reason CO is dangerous is that Carbon monoxide can bind to haemoglobin in your blood but does so about 240 times more tightly than oxygen, forming a compound called carboxyhaemoglobin.

This means that if both carbon monoxide and oxygen are inhaled, carbon monoxide will preferentially bind to haemoglobin. This reduces the amount of haemoglobin available to bind to oxygen, so the body and tissues become starved of oxygen.

It has no taste, no smell and will kill you quite effectively without you even knowing it is happening.

suisidevw

Yes, my bad, thanks ac. By law I'm guessing they don't HAVE to be retrofitted, however it would obviously be wise for all to use one!

wrightk

thanks for replies so far. council have said they are not obliged to install carbon monoxide alarms and for me to buy one. which i have done already, just wondering about the placement. the stove is in the kitchen.
as for fire board im not sure as i cannot see down from the inspection hole, i know it gets very hot by the flue pipe and its slightly worrying.

with regards to the chimney and sweeping, we havent used it a lot, but we have used it as its been quite cold here throughout the summer. i vaccumed about an inch worth of soot thick near the inspection hole. i was considering maybe getting some brushes myself and doing it, but i probably cant afford it and im not a sweep so i dont know what im doing

Swipe

Well if it was perfectly fine for the previous occupants I wouldn't worrying yourself.

wrightk

unfortunately the previous occupants abused the stove quite badly. from the sweeps comments and our neighbours i dont think they cared about it to be honest. just trying to breathe some new life into it and make sure its safe thats all

muckybutt

Pics would be helpful of the register plate and of the flue setup.

As you have found out from the council co detectors are not compulsary on existing solid fuel fires, they are compulsary on new installations though as they are part of the building regs.

Im hoping it is fire board that is above the stove and not either plaster board or dare I say the "A" word, A was used widely by councils for just this kind of installation as it was fire proof and fairlytough, it was also widely used for flues from boilers etc.

As for sweeping, it might seem a straight forward job but you can soon come unstuck if you dont know what you are doing. I have rescued many a brush that has come off and got stuck up a chimney ! a sweep will also be able to tell you if its burning correctly - if you have had a chimney fire - if the chimney is in good repair and so on.

wrightk

heres the flue setup. i cant send a pic right now inside the actual chimney as the stove is on. the board that is the widest, feels like wood. the thin strip inbetween this and the wall where the inspection plate is, feels like bricks