smokey fireplace problems

Here's a possible issue that I didn't read... at my cousins camp they replaced an old barrell wood stove with a sweet new steel plate style stove. The new stove is too big and creates too much of an updraft when it gets too hot. It will actually blow flames out the small draft holes in the door. Our solution... take the spark arrester off when were there for the weekend. We figured the spark arrester was too small to handle the volume of exhaust its puttin out

 

yeah...its a good 3 ...maybe 4 feet off the peak of the roof.

 

well....just found out what the hell the problem was. went up on the roof and looked under the cap at the mesh under it. it was almost completely clogged up. took the cap off and started yanking on the mesh.....pulled it up and a good blast of warm air hit me in the face. that damn thing was too clogged to have a good updraft. got a good hot fire going now.....and its breathing like it should be.

 

Critters get in there Will? Glad it's working with this weather!

 

hey Dave.....nah, no critters.....all the creosote from the fires from last year and the few this year had clogged the small openings in the mesh up.

 

Good thing you found it early, could have been bad!

 

I thought you said you had it cleaned

 

we did when we moved in last october......but i had left that mesh in there and with as small of openings as it had....crap was getting caught up in it....and we burned alotta fires in there last winter.

 

Well , at least you are aware of it now . Chimney fires are no fun , I know someone who lost everything when their house burned to the ground this year .

 

yeah man...my father in laws chimney caught fire last year....and their chimney sits way off the house. good thing the fire dept was only about 3 minutes out.

 

Even if it doesn't burn the house down , the heat that a chimney fire burns at will crack the clay flueliners and the chimney is basically fucked . The only way to fix it if that happens is to install a stainless flue liner .

At any rate , keep safe , burn dry wood and clean your chimney at least at the beginning of every burning season , more if your wood is pitchy or less than dry .

 

I'm of the opinion that IF this is a newer house, then it's quite air-tight... The fireplace is starving for air....

Try this... Next time you light it... open a window in that room and see what happens... no need for a large opening... but the fireplace might be creating a good draft, but no air to replace what is going up the stack....

John

 

You didn't read the half dozen posts before yours I think .

 

house was built in 1935....has a double chimney.