Do I need a chimney liner with my wood stove?

This is a frequently asked question by our customers here at Bradley Stoves Sussex Ltd. It is also a subject of great discussion on the internet where you will often find advice telling you that you don't need to have a liner if you are installing a woodburner.

There isn't anything that Steve O'Reilly, Director of Bradley Stoves, doesn't know about stoves and installing them so here is his advice on the matter:

"If you install a controllable wood stove, which most are these days, then you absolutely must have a chimney liner. This is because tar is produced by the smoke as it condensates. Woodburners can produce a lot of tar because of their low-burn ability and because the chimney is cold (most of the heat is returned to the room rather than going up the chimney as with a conventional open fire). The liner is specifically designed to bring the tar back into the stove to re-burn, which prevents a number of problems from the internal staining of walls to chimney fires."

So if you are buying a woodburner then it is likely that you will need to line your chimney as today's stoves are primarily controllable.