Saw a scary change in a flue liner after just two heating seasons

I inspected a chimney in a house built three years ago. The stainless steel liner looked perfect on the first annual sweep. This year, the bottom six inches were completely thinned and pitted. The homeowner had been burning those pressed wood logs with the fake wax coating, and the acidic creosote ate right through the metal. I've never seen corrosion happen that fast. Has anyone else run into this with those specific fake logs?

3 comments

3 Comments

nora5352mo ago

Yeah, that "acidic creosote" from those wax logs is brutal stuff. I had a customer with the same exact problem, liner looked like Swiss cheese. We had to replace the whole bottom section. I told them to stop burning that junk immediately and switch to seasoned hardwood. The damage stopped after that, but the metal was already gone. Those fake logs should come with a warning label.

seanh912mo ago

Seriously, they should be illegal to sell without a huge warning.

ryanprice1mo ago

Funny enough, I actually talked to a chimney sweep who said those wax logs can also mess with your air quality inside the house, not just the chimney. @nora535 you hit the nail on the head about the damage, but the fumes from those things are no joke either. They burn really dirty and can leave a weird smell that settles into furniture over time. Might be worth mentioning to your customers too, since most people don't think about what they're breathing in while the fire's going.