The water heater was just replaced.

[DLZ Dan]

Went on an estimate and saw this. He said he had just bought the house 5 years ago and it came with the new water heater. I didn't have furnace cement on my truck but I did explain the severity of this to the homeowner. In the meantime I tagged the heater and furnace gas lines and shut them off. I offered to come back with the furnace cement and seal it for him but he said he has a guy.

Keep in mind this about 6' from the door leading into his kids playroom!

[DLZ Dan]

Just figured out how to upload it from my iPad


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[syndicated]

Shouldn't be vented up a masonry chimney at all.

[mason]

Shouldn't be vented up a masonry chimney at all.

X2 unless the vents go all the way up. I'f they don't, should see a chimney liner coming out of those holes

[gravity]

whats wrong with it venting up the chimney?

flue pipe should actually stick into the chimney and cemented around the pipes. also put on a barometric damper for w/h and furnace. give it a good tune and good to go

[syndicated]

And if the mortar is cracked up the stack? If a brick has slipped out and is partially blocking the vent?

You fix it, you bought it!

[DLZ Dan]

So let the CO leak into the house, much better idea.


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[bigtime]

That looks bad, but really not any more dangerous than a natural draft water heater, which isnt extremely dangerous, imho. Id guess air is getting pulled into the space around the flue, just like the draft hood on the water heater. Im not a fan of venting into an old chimney like that. Especially if its on an outside wall that is exposed and stays cold. Another good reason for a CO detector.

[mason]

whats wrong with it venting up the chimney?

flue pipe should actually stick into the chimney and cemented around the pipes. also put on a barometric damper for w/h and furnace. give it a good tune and good to go

If the chimney is not properly tile lined all the way up and down the flue gases will eat away the mortar possibly causing chimney collapse or flue gases entering the living space. Out of all the chimneys I've seen very few have intact chimney tiles all the way, thus a chimney liner is needed. Perhaps your area is different.

[wally01]

Doesn't look like five year old water heater vent pipe to me.

[hearthman]

It needs a Level II inspection as described in NFPA 211, chapter 14. I'm sure that will reveal the need for a full length listed liner. I've never seen those dual thimbles properly installed. BTW, you can no longer cement galvanized steel vent connectors directly into a masonry wall---must be stainless steel but again that's only if the rest of the chimney passes a level II. If that 3" is less than 3 feet above the top of the WH then it must be upsized to 4". See the sizing charts in the gas code. You should have a min. 3 screws per joint equidistantly spaced, 1/4" per ft slope and offsets supported. Any more pics? Is there a cleanout on this flue? How about the top of the chimney?
Keep in mind that hollow 8" block does NOT meet any of the codes requirement for a minimum 4" solid masonry unit around a flue. A 4" CMU block does because it is what we call a "75%'er" meaning at least 75% of its cross-sectional area is solid masonry.

[DLZ Dan]

No more pics. I guess I was too expensive for the homeowner. I just took a pic of things I need to be addressed. No clean out and I didn't look at the top of the chimney. The chimney goes up through the garage and up through the attic and out.


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[motoguy128]

It's often better to consider a direct vent water heater and go to PVC rather than reline. Some masonry chimneys are divided and get narrower near the top and can't be easily relined if at all. That was the primary reason I went tankless in my home.