Homeowner guide
WETT Inspections in Ontario: Insurance, Mortgages and Home Sales
A WETT-style inspection documents that a wood-burning appliance, its venting and its clearances meet the installation standards insurers, lenders and buyers ask about.
If you are insuring, buying, selling or refinancing an Ontario property with a wood stove, fireplace insert or wood-burning fireplace, there is a good chance someone will ask for a WETT inspection report.
This page explains what the inspection looks at, why it is requested, and what you can do beforehand so the report comes back clean.
Who asks for one, and why
- Insurers, before binding or renewing a policy on a home with a solid-fuel appliance
- Lenders, as a condition of a mortgage on a rural or wood-heated property
- Buyers, after a home inspector flags a wood-burning appliance for follow-up
- Sellers, to get ahead of the question before listing
What is inspected
- The appliance itself: certification label, condition, firebox, baffles and gaskets
- Clearances to combustibles at the sides, back, top and hearth extension
- The connector pipe: material, length, slope, support and joint fastening
- The chimney: type, height above the roofline, liner condition and cap
- The hearth pad size, material and thermal rating
- Installation details against the manufacturer's listed instructions
How to prepare
- Have the appliance cold and cleaned out before the visit
- Find the manufacturer's manual or the model number on the certification label
- Clear stored items away from the appliance and hearth
- Book the sweep first so the flue can be seen properly
- Note anything the previous owner changed about the installation
Common reasons a report comes back with problems
The most frequent findings are clearance shortfalls, an undersized hearth pad, a single-wall connector pipe run too close to a wall, and an uncertified or homemade appliance.
Most of these are fixable. A heat shield, a longer hearth extension or a change of connector pipe often resolves the finding without touching the appliance.
Services covered in this guide
Want this looked at on your own home?
Send us the details and we will confirm what the visit involves and what it costs before we attend.