W.E.T.T Certification

[Clive Peacock]

Is there an alternative to W.E.T.T for wood burning appliance inspection in Canada? I have issues with what appears to be a monopoly.

Best regards,
Clive

[Brian A. MacNeish]

Originally Posted by cpeacock1

Is there an alternative to W.E.T.T for wood burning appliance inspection in Canada? I have issues with what appears to be a monopoly.

Best regards,
Clive

No!

It has a long life and has generally proven itself quite well to the various provincial Fire Marshalls and the insurance industry. In our area, if there is a wood heating appliance in a home, the insurance company wants a WETT certified individual to do an inspection before they will offer insurance.

In Nova Scotia, one deputy Fire Marshall was a great instructor until private industry hired him out of government and he moved to another province.

[Wand Raymond]

No its WETT or nothing.

However some competitive association would be a good thing.

[Roy D. Cooke, Sr]

Originally Posted by cpeacock1

Is there an alternative to W.E.T.T for wood burning appliance inspection in Canada? I have issues with what appears to be a monopoly.

Best regards,
Clive

Having Talked to people who work at Making their living selling servicing and installing and repairing wood burning equipment.
They are no pleased with the W.E.T.T. Association .
One had been on their Board.
They feel those who do wett inspections should also be employed in the industry. Many home Inspectors do wett inspections ,Have never Installed Cleaned or worked on a wood burning appliance .
Take the course pass the exam and if you have done the correct number of home Inspections you are now approved to do wett inspections .
They and I feel Home Inspectors should not be doing WETT inspections .
Go out to the guy who sells and installs wood stoves and I expect he too feels this same way.

I did 4 Houses in the Tweed area and all had WETT certificates for the wood Burning appliance , Not One should have been approved ,now one had cleaned the chimney ,many things wrong with the installations..

[Brian A. MacNeish]

[quote=rcooke;745731]Having Talked to people who work at Making their living selling servicing and installing and repairing wood burning equipment.
They are no pleased with the W.E.T.T. Association .
They should start their own, shouldn't they?
One had been on their Board.
Was that the board that tried to hijack WETT Ontario but lost the battle. Sure he's pissed!

They feel those who do wett inspections should also be employed in the industry. Many home Inspectors do wett inspections ,Have never Installed Cleaned or worked on a wood burning appliance .
Take the course pass the exam and if you have done the correct number of home Inspections you are now approved to do wett inspections .
AT least it's hands on training with a proctored exam. It now requires 80 weeks in the field....quit talking about the past requirements. This was explained to you before on these boards........Hell you don't even have to do any inspections here before you get certified!!

They and I feel Home Inspectors should not be doing WETT inspections .
Go out to the guy who sells and installs wood stoves and I expect he too feels this same way.

I did 4 Houses in the Tweed area and all had WETT certificates* for the wood Burning appliance , Not One should have been approved ,now one had cleaned the chimney ,many things wrong with the installations..[/quote]

Roy, you took the course what 10-12+ years ago, didn't do the exam, haven't done any upgrading, don't inspect wood equipment at all, but you sure do know when something's wrong with a wood heating system. Can't figure that one out!!

*The WETT certificate is given to the person that passes the training and gets the required field time in. They are then WETT certified!. A WETT certificate is never given to an appliance!!!

[Wand Raymond]

Roy, you took the course what 10-12+ years ago, didn't do the exam, haven't done any upgrading, don't inspect wood equipment at all, but you sure do know when something's wrong with a wood heating system. Can't figure that one out!!

I think Roy is correct, just because someone passes a test and does upgrading does not mean he is proficient. You should know that Brian, but then you feel just because someone takes a course they will be great in the field.

You tried this same lame excuse with those that have NC, yet we know that not everyone who is NC is proficient, ditto doctors, lawyers and other professionals.

[Rick Senior]

I don't do WETT inspections and I don't plan to. I always recommend that the purchaser have wood burning appliance and chimney inspected and cleaned by qualified contractor prior to their use. If you have a home with a 3 month closing date who knows what the seller has been burning in that time frame.
WETT inspections can be a source of addition income, but I am not sure if the added liability is worth it.
I have completed inspections on two homes recently where the wood stove/ furnace and the oil furnace share a flue. The first words out of the seller is that it is certified by a WETT inspector. My recommendation to my client is to get this in writing and run it past their insurance company. I also explain the problems and effects of backdrafting with this type of installation and that they should consider adding the cost of an additional flue into budget.
Ultimately I would rather leave this type of inspection up to a professional that works with these systems every day.

Regards,

Rick

[Brian A. MacNeish]

Originally Posted by rsenior

I don't do WETT inspections and I don't plan to. I always recommend that the purchaser have wood burning appliance and chimney inspected and cleaned by qualified contractor prior to their use. If you have a home with a 3 month closing date who knows what the seller has been burning in that time frame.
WETT inspections can be a source of addition income, but I am not sure if the added liability is worth it.
I have completed inspections on two homes recently where the wood stove/ furnace and the oil furnace share a flue. The first words out of the seller is that it is certified by a WETT inspector. My recommendation to my client is to get this in writing and run it past their insurance company. I also explain the problems and effects of backdrafting with this type of installation and that they should consider adding the cost of an additional flue into budget.
Ultimately I would rather leave this type of inspection up to a professional that works with these systems every day.

Regards,

Rick

A wood stove cannot share a flue with any oil appliance. A wood stove can share a flue with another wood heating appliance if the flue is adequately sized and the appliances are on the same level of the house.

An oil appliance (usually add-on boiler/furnace) can share a flue with a wood furnace/boiler if it is tested, approved and matched for that use.....again the flue must be adequately sized and the appliances are on the same level of the house.

Nothing can share a fireplace flue. A free standing wood stove can be vented through the fireplace flue if (1) the damper is sealed shut or other safe/necessary modifications are made by a certified mason and WETT tech and (2) all other clearances to combustibles are met when the stove is vented through the upper part of the fireplace chimney/flue.

[Wand Raymond]

Nothing can share a fireplace flue. A free standing wood stove can be vented through the fireplace flue if (1) the damper is sealed shut or other safe/necessary changes are made by a certified mason/WETT tech and all (2) other clearances to combustibles are met when the stove is vented through the upper part of the fireplace chimney/flue.

Not here. Any woodstove must have a stainless steel liner. And your blanket statement does not wash if the flue is withiin 18" of the ceiling.

You did take the course did you not Brian?

[Brian A. MacNeish]

Originally Posted by Wand Raymond

Not here. Any woodstove must have a stainless steel liner.

Don't you mean that any chimney flue venting a wood stove must have a stainless steel liner?

So you're telling me that a wood stove cannot be vented into a safe and properly sized chimney with a clay tile liner or a "factory built 650*C modular block" chimney because they don't have steel liners!!

Get real......go take the WETT course!! Maybe Nick will lend you the $$$ for it or with luck , pay for it.


And your blanket statement does not wash if the flue is withiin 18" of the ceiling.
What if it's a non-combustible ceiling?

You did take the course did you not Brian?

My blanket statement DOES WASH, Raymond....please re-read the following statement from my post until you understand what it says:

"(2) all other clearances to combustibles are met when the stove is vented through the upper part of the fireplace chimney/flue. "

BTW, The 18" flue clearance to combustibles is reduced (a) to 9" with simple metal shielding installed as specified, (b) can be reduced to 6" with certified double wall fluepipe and (c) can be reduced to 3" with the above mentioned double wall stovepipe and proper shielding!!

Again....go take the WETT course!!

And don't come back to the boards until you've learned something of which you try to expound on!!

[Wand Raymond]

Brian

Not here. Any woodstove must have a stainless steel liner, insurers will not insure it!

I suggest before you pontificate about your lack of knowledge you do your home work. Insurers will not insure stoves installed in the manner you describe in Ontario!

So take a hike!

[Brian A. MacNeish]

Originally Posted by Wand Raymond

Brian

Not here. Any woodstove must have a stainless steel liner, insurers will not insure it!

I suggest before you pontificate about your lack of knowledge you do your home work. Insurers will not insure stoves installed in the manner you describe in Ontario!

So take a hike!

Why would insurers that serve country-wide not insure, in Ontario, those situations mentioned by yourself while insuring those same situations in my area? .......I'm reguarly doing WETT inspections as part of HI and no one's throwing that "steel liner requirement in all cases" back to myself!

Are you saying that a code compliant unit masonry chimney with clay tile liner and/or a ULC Standard S629 (certified for wood) Factory Built 650*C Modular Block Chimney cannot serve a wood stove without having a steel liner?

Funny set of codes up there!! Do you always refer any wood heating situations to WETT certified individuals or just hit it on the the fly??

If you are not WETT certified and don't do any wood heating inspections, where does your knowledge come from?