Setting the Right Standard

The industry is moving rapidly and it’s an ongoing challenge to try to keep up with changing standards and directives for products and their applications.

Where Chimney Pots are concerned, it can be confusing trying to understand which pot should be used on which application and if what was installed previously meets today’s current legislation and standards.

What should I use on solid fuel, gas or if the client has a decorative fuel effect fire (DFE) and how can you be certain that the selected pot meets current regulations and standards.

W T Knowles manufacture Clay Chimney Pots in Elland, West Yorkshire and their experience in the industry has enabled them to successfully serve the market since 1906.
They have previously regularly maintained their product certification but not content with this, have recently completed a full review and re-classification of a large part of their range with the help of British Standards Institute (BSI).

Standard BS EN 13502:2002 covers Chimneys and specifically the requirements and test methods for clay and ceramic flue terminals.
The standard defines certain designs of Clay terminals as Type 0 (Open topped terminals with no flow restrictions), Type 1 (Restricted flue terminal) and Type 2 (Restricted flue terminals with a resistance factor not greater than 5).

All very confusing – so what does this mean to the installer?
Type 0 terminals do not require aerodynamic testing and are used exclusively on solid fuel applications.
Type 1 and Type 2 terminals require aerodynamic testing and BSI, as an independent laboratory was engaged by W T Knowles to undertake this.

As a result, W T Knowles now has certified 19 ranges - Type 0, 12 ranges - Type 1 and 13 ranges - Type 2.

The testing specification also included acid resistance and freeze/thaw resistance of the clay material used in the manufacture of all flue terminals which was also successfully carried out by BSI and is recorded on the certificate. 
All flue terminals are stamped in accordance with the requirements of BSI standard BSEN13502.

A Chimney Pot Classification guide is available to download from the W T Knowles website and in this we recommend Type 0 and Type 1 pots are used on solid fuel, Type 1 (DFE) pots be used on multi-fuel and Type 2 pots used exclusively on gas applications.

Comprehensive fitting instructions are also available for download from the website.

This independent, family-run business manufactures the chimney pots on-site which means they control the quality and production, delivering standard pots from stock or even bespoke chimney pots in as little as six to eight weeks.