Questions & Answers
Here are a few
helpful tips to maintaining a safe and efficient chimney
Q1 : How
often should I clean my Chimney ?
A1: There are specific
recommendations for minimum intervals between cleaning chimneys.
These will vary depending on the amount of use and the type of fuel
used, but generally they are:
Smokeless Fuels
At least
once a year
Coal
At
least twice a year
Wood
Quarterly during use
Gas
Once a year
Q2 : How
can I recognise problems with my chimney ?
|
Symptom |
Possible Cause |
|
Fireplace
with large opening smokes all the time |
Opening too large for flue size.
Incorrect terminal.
Partially blocked flue.
Flue
too large.
|
|
Fireplace
with standard (small) fire opening smokes all the time |
Flue
to large.
Flue
to small.
Badly
formed throat.
Incorrect terminal.
Partially blocked flue.
|
|
Fire only
smokes with doors and windows closed |
Lack
of room ventilation. |
|
Fire
smokes continuously in certain wind directions |
Chimney in pressure zone.
Seek advice from Sweep.
|
|
Fire
puffs occasionally in certain wind directions |
Chimney in downdraught situation.
Anti
down draught cowl required.
|
|
Fire
(woodstove) worked well for a time, smoking gradually got
worse. |
Flue
partially blocked with soot/tar build up. Sweep
required.
|
|
Fire
suddenly started smoking (after the chimney was swept) |
Flue
partially blocked by mortar/mid-feather brick collapse.
|
|
Smoking Chimneys (Down Draught and Pressure Zone) problems |
A.
Downdraught
In this
position, the wind is blowing over a tall tree, or it could
be a hill, or say, a block of flats, it descends onto the
chimney top, causing smoke or fumes to puff into the room
from time to time. For downdraught problems, certain types
of chimney cowls and pots can help reduce the problem ( see
anti-downdraught cowls on our web site).
A.
Pressure Zone
In this
situation the chimney is sited in the line of the prevailing
wind, with the house roof, or it could be a tall building,
behind the chimney terminal. This can cause puffing or even
a continuous smoke spillage when the wind is blowing.
Pressure zone problems can be more difficult to solve. The
simplest way would be to raise the chimney until it is above
the pressure zone (though not always practical) . This can
be done with a tall chimney pot. (Chimney pots are made up
to (5') tall).
On the
other hand, if the chimney is much too low, you could raise
the stack by 2 to 3 Feet and add a tall pot.
You could
try opening a small window on the windward side of the
house, if this helps then fit a permanent air vent. Doing
this helps to equalize the pressure at the top and bottom of
the chimney.
If all
else fails, then an electric chimney fan may be the only
solution.
|
|
