Chimney installation

It is important that you properly familiarise yourself with the appropriate regulations when installing your chimney.

Regulations for distances from the uninsulated stove pipes to flammable materials

You should be aware when positioning your new stove in your room that chimney safety distances can be larger than stove safety distances. If your walls are not flammable, you can normally position your stove right up against the wall. We recommend, however, that you always leave 5-10 cm between the stove and the wall. Chimney safety distances often mean, however, that the stove must be positioned further away from the wall.

BR 18 – Applicable regulations for installation and assembly of chimneys

On 01-07-2018, the new building regulation BR18 came into force. According to BR18, there are changed requirements for the installation of chimneys. The changes are significant when a chimney is mounted near flammable material such as a wooden wall or door frames.

When the stove and chimney are placed in the room, the uninsulated chimney must be 45 cm from flammable material (e.g., 45 cm from the chimney to a wooden wall behind the stove).

For installation in a flat ceiling, the fully insulated part of the chimney must pass 30 cm through the ceilings to be legally installed.

If the chimney is to pass through a sloped ceiling, please refer to our chimney calculator. The calculator can determine the distance, with which the insulated part of the pipe, must pass through the ceiling to be legal.

If you install an uninsulated VARDE Ø15 cm chimney, the chimney pipe will have a safety distance of 45 cm from flammable walls. Here, we would recommend that you install our semi-insulated chimney pipes instead of uninsulated stove pipes. VARDE semi-insulated chimney pipes still have an internal diameter of 15 cm, but the external diameter is 20 cm. The chimney pipe is approved for a safety distance from flammable materials of just 14 cm.

The BR-18 requirement ONLY applies to chimney pipes mounted near flammable material.

If installing a chimney from another manufacturer, you will need to check the designation code. The designation code will typically tell what safety distances to which you are required to adhere. If the designation is “NM” (Not Measured), the safety distance will be 3 X pipe diameter, but never less than 37.5 cm.

Chimney calculator

If your chimney is to be led up through a horizontal ceiling that is flammable, the fully insulated part must extend 45 cm down through the ceiling. If you have a sloped ceiling, we refer to our chimney calculator. This will be able to calculate how far down the fully insulated part should be.

You should be aware that other regulations may apply outside Denmark.

If in doubt, your chimney sweep will be able to advise you further.

Replacing your wood-burning stove

When replacing your old wood-burning stove, please be aware that statutory installation requirements have changed since 1 January 2018.

If your new stove has the same height or is taller than your old one and the chimney needs to be shortened, your chimney authorisation will still be valid. You could send a picture of your old stove to your chimney sweep, showing with a long ruler that your stove is the same height or is taller than your old one.

If your new stove is lower than the old one, your installation will be subject to the new regulations on safety distances from flammable materials.

It is always a good idea to consult your chimney sweeper before replacing your wood-burning stove.

→ See our complete chimney installation guide here.