I received notice from USFS with my permit renewal requiring painting of a stainless steel chimney used for my wood stove. I contacted the manufacturer about this. They suggested this wasn't a great idea, because the steel gets hot and any paint (even BBQ grade paint) will likely flake. Has anyone else run into this issue? Is it worth pushing back? The chimney has been there for nearly 20 years. 

Steve,

There may be room to push back by asking the FS to identify the specific policy that requires you to paint the stove pipe.  The closest R5 policy to this issue that I could find is the policy regarding roof colors which states "The following roof coverings are prohibited for new installation: corrugated fiberglass, painted metal (does not include color-impregnated metal), and unpainted metal." There is no specific policy regarding stove pipes, however, your FS staff might be trying to apply the "no unpainted metal" roof standard to a stove pipe.  The same policy also prohibits painting roofs after installation, so I think there's room to push back.  I also say that as someone who has visited hundreds of cabin tracts and literally thousands of cabins in several FS regions, almost all stove pipes I've seen are not painted.

I'll also add my personal experience.  My stovepipe is painted a dull black and has been for 40 years on the interior of my cabin. I've repainted once and have never experienced paint flaking. Most stove pipes like mine are insulated, so while it gets hot, it's not so hot to impair the paint. The exterior portion of my stovepipe is not painted, so I have no experience with how well the paint holds up in the weather.

Thanks Doug. It's not stovepipe; it's the exterior stainless steel chimney (the interior stovepipe is black and came that way; the insulated part of the exterior chimney is stainless).. Does that make a difference? I called the manufacturer of the chimney and they said while it was ok to paint it with BBQ-level paint, they didn't recommend it because it would likely flake in short time. So just trying to do what's safest and best.

Steve, mine is stainless Duratech double wall (insulated) chimney pipe (8" inside, 10" outside diameter) from stove top through the roof to about 6' above the roofline with a spark arrester cap.  The interior portion from my wood stove to the roof  is painted flat black, the exterior portion is (unpainted) stainless, which is shiny. I know you can get the same chimney pipe in black, but mine is all stainless with portion inside the cabin painted black. Not sure my application matches your situation.

I know this is old, but I came across it looking for something else and I happen to know the FSH (Forest Service Handbook) for Region 5 that the FS seems to reference when the object to stainless steel flues.

from FSH 2709.11 Chapter 40 R5 2709.11-2021-1 41.23g - 4d

"Chimneys and Flues. Every effort shall be made to retain the stone and masonry work of existing chimneys. Solid masonry chimneys must extend to a solid ground foundation with adequate footing. Metal flues must be non-reflective."  bold added.

The FS seems to say that means paint.  

I know many who have just painted it even though the paint may not last long and a few who have pushed back successfully.