Famco Flue Liner Replacement Nationwide

Famco Flue Liner Replacement: The Staten Island Owner’s Guide

We stock and install Famco-compatible flue liner replacement for Staten Island homeowners, with most jobs running between $1,800 and $3,400 installed depending on height, diameter, and whether the surround needs resealing. Famco liners in the 316Ti stainless series are what we see most often in local homes, and we carry common diameters from 5 to 8 inches on our trucks. If your chimney is drafting poorly or you’re seeing rust flakes in the firebox, the liner is often the culprit.

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Most Staten Island owners discover their Famco flue liner has failed during a routine sweep or when the fireplace starts smoking back into the room on windy days. In older homes near Great Kills or New Dorp, we’ve found original Famco liners installed in the 1980s and 90s that have simply reached end of life, the metal thinned by decades of acidic flue gases and Staten Island’s freeze-thaw cycles.

Which Famco Models This Applies To

Famco manufactured several liner series over the years, and identifying yours correctly matters because the collar and termination hardware differ. The 316Ti flexible liner, their most common residential line, has a woven stainless body with a .006 to .012 inch wall thickness depending on the vintage. Earlier Famco rigid liners used a snap-lock seam that can be mistaken for Olympia Chimney’s system, but the collar angle is steeper, 45 degrees versus Olympia’s 30. Check the upper termination for a stamped Famco logo or a part number beginning with FL-316 or FL-304.

We source OEM Famco replacement sections where they still exist, though several original SKUs have been discontinued since the brand shifted focus. For those, we use quality aftermarket equivalents from our DuraFlex and Gelco inventory that match the original spec exactly, never builder-grade substitutes. The critical compatibility gotcha: Famco’s 6-inch flexible liner measures true 6-inch ID, while some aftermarket brands run slightly undersized at 5.875 inches. That quarter-inch matters for draft and for passing inspection in Richmond County. We’ll measure yours with a mandrel before ordering anything.

Signs Your Famco Flue Liner Replacement Is Failing

• Smoke backing up into the room. A compromised Famco liner loses its sealed path, especially if the flexible sections have separated at the collar joints or the rigid pipe has cracked at a seam. Draft depends on a smooth, continuous flue wall, and even a small gap kills it.
• Rust-colored staining on the firebox walls or hearth. The 316Ti alloy resists corrosion well, but the 304-grade Famco liners common in 1990s installs will eventually pit through. That rust is condensation carrying acid through pinholes you cannot yet see from inside the firebox.
• Visible gaps or sagging when viewed from the top. Flexible liners sag when the support plate corrodes or the original installer spaced hangers too far apart. In Staten Island’s coastal humidity, we’ve found Famco support hardware failing in as little as 12 years.
• Strong odor even when the fireplace is cold. A liner with gaps lets creosote odors seep into the home through the chimney cavity. If you smell it on humid summer days in Westerleigh or Port Richmond, the liner seal is gone.
• Chunks of metal or mortar in the cleanout. Serious deterioration. The liner wall has perforated, or the original parging behind it is collapsing. This one needs prompt attention, not because we’re alarmists, but because the next step is liner collapse blocking the flue entirely.

Replacement Cost & What’s Included

The range reflects height, diameter, and whether we need to rebuild the top of the chase or just swap the liner. Every estimate starts with our camera inspection, photos you can see, and a plain-English verdict. No-hassle upfront pricing means the number on the estimate is the number on the invoice. The 90-Day Done Right Promise covers the installation in writing, no arguing. If the chimney’s sound, we’ll say so. If it isn’t, you’ll hear that too.

DIY or Call Us?

There’s a safe middle ground here. A homeowner can verify the part number on their existing Famco liner from the attic or roof if they’re comfortable on a ladder, and can certainly check for the symptoms we’ve listed above. What you cannot safely do is remove and replace a flue liner yourself. The work involves working at height on a pitched roof, handling sections of stainless steel that weigh 40 to 80 pounds, and properly sealing the liner to a code-compliant termination. More critically, an improperly supported liner can collapse during heating season, blocking the flue and forcing carbon monoxide back into the home. We’ve been called to fix DIY liner jobs in Annadale and Eltingville, and the homeowner always spent more than if they’d called us first. For a Famco flue liner replacement done once and done right, call (516) 613-3035.

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