A poll: How many of you have experienced a chimney fire in your home?

We had one back in the 70's - had a comforter stove piped into a fireplace - loved that stove heated the whole house about 1800 sq ft 2 story -- always had the chimney cleaned in the spring by the same guy who just happened to be a local fireman - but one year an acquaintance of ours started a business cleaning chimneys and furnace vents with one of those humongous vacuums on the back of a truck - when turned on fingers popped up - anyway, we decided to give him a try - when they arrived it was two young men who were clueless - well, they cleaned the chimney and left -- that fall I cranked up the stove and suddenly this roar started along with thick black smoke which rolled down the street. Fortunately, I had a chimfex which I popped open and threw into the stove and shut it up but one of the neighbors had called the fire dept. When they came the fire was already out and they didn't do anything. What the chimney cleaners had not done was vacuum the smoke ledge after brushing the chimney. Needless to say, we called the old reliable cleaner and he came and cleaned up after the new guys. Lesson learned - stick with what you know and who you trust.

Then a couple of years ago, we had a fire in the stovepipe which burned thru the pipe - luckily I caught it before it got worse. We replaced the pipe with some heavier gauge pipe and after that started taking it down every month to clean.

Shari said:

struggle said:

I have had one. No fire department call. Burned itself out. Changed set up afterwards and stove. No more fires in the chimney.

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Interesting thread.

Struggle - What did you change in your set up besides the stove?

Shari

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I had rebuilt a Vermont Castings Vigilant and was having build up issues in the clay tile lined chimney (8X8) before the rebuild. Thinking the rebuild of the stove would make it burn cleaner. I found out the the efficiency of the stove improved greatly but did nothing for the chimney.

So after the chimney fire I assumed the worse case that the liner had been cracked in places for some time. I dropped/pulled a 5.5" flex liner and bought the Mansfield. Could not have turned out better.

I would have to clean the old set up three times during the winter months and would almost fill a five gallon bucket up every time. With the new set up and same wood I clean the liner once at the end of the season and am luck if I get half a gallon of fine powder out of it.

Sold the vigilant on Ebay.It was a great stove but I did not want to chance running it on a 5.5" liner. I tried to get an answer out of Hearthstone on the Mansfield on a 5.5" liner and they would not say one way or the other. It works and drafts so well I had to put a dampener .

I've had one, came home late, it was below zero, filled the stove with kindling and newspaper, opened it up, walked away to get something to eat. Came back a few minutes later, heard what sounded like a freight train coming from my stove, scared the crap out of me. Shut the stove down but it was still chuggin. Took a small fire extinguisher and set it off in the chimney clean out. Out it went. Needless to say the house got colder that night. Chimney is 6 by 6 flue lined and stove is a 2 foot airtight box made in Maine, Sunshine. I have 3 of them, great stoves but you have to burn them hot twice a day and you'll have no problems

Well, I know I am a rare breed, but as you can see in my signature, I have been burning what you all call the "smoke dragon" for 25 years (I thought it was pretty darn nice when I got it back in the '80s...actually still do!). I started with it just stuck in the fire place (that's the way it was done then) Now it is direct connect to a 7 in SS liner. I have never had a chimney fire and hope I never do. I have always tried to burn dry wood, burn it hot enough, and clean my flue. I worry more now than ever before because of everything I read here on this forum. However, I have been a firefighter for 31 years, seen a lot of chimney fires and I guess I have gained a lot of experience it what causes them. Again, hope I never have one, but with the old "smoke dragon", I guess it is possible. Everyone stay safe and have a good year! Steve

No. And I hope to keep it that way. I pop the cap twice a year. I think I could clean at the end of season and be fine. But I have made it my rule of thumb to check in middle of Januarary. Peace of mind is worth the liitle effort it takes . I have been amazed by how liitle the build up has been. Even in our first year when we were burning not so seasoned wood. This is the first year that everything I am burning has been stacked for more than a year. I am curious to get up there and see.

BrotherBart said:

Keep up with the newspapers and you will find that clearances to combustibles burn down a hell of a lot more houses than chimney fires.

Move the magazine rack!

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Agreed . . . that and folks who still insist on sticking their ashes in cardboard boxes, plastic pails and grocery bags . . . and then leave the ashes on their wooden deck, covered porch or in their garage . . . and come home to find their house or garage on fire.

ffspeed said:

Let Me Stand Next To Your Fire said:

We had one in our house when I was a kid (mid 80's). I didn't even know what was going on as my Dad was running up and down the stairs. He called the Fire Dept. and asked them to come down with no sirens so as to not cause a commotion in the neighborhood...Well they came with multiple trucks, sirens blaring - the neighbors all came out. Talk of the neighborhood that day.

Rob

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They just love running those sirens, and letting every body in the neighbor hood, know you screwed up.

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Not to mention it's a liability issue . . . we tend to respond in one of two ways . . . quick with red lights and sirens so we can get to Point A to Point B relatively quick or by driving without the lights and sirens and stopping at each and every light and waiting for it to turn green . . . some calls we can respond to without the lights and sirens (issuing burn permits, helping the ambulance crew lift a very obese person into the ambulance, etc.) and some calls we respond to quickly since it would be rather embarassing to lose a house because we were at the stoplight at Main and First Street.

5-6 times a year. HAHAHAHA

Can't say as though I ever have had a chimney fire . . . with my EPA stove or with the old smoke dragons . . . then again it would have been rather embarassing for me to have a chimney fire. I honestly think I see far more chimney fires from folks burning with smoke dragons (no offense to you heathen smoke dragon burning folks ) . . . it's just the nature of the stove and the mindset. These old stoves allow folks to get a fire going and then starve the fire . . . combine that with the old Maine mindset of burning wood that has only been cut and split since August or September and it tends to result in an excessive build up of creosote in no time . . . at least until the temps dip down below the donut and then folks start to crank their old woodstoves and over-heat the chimney to the point where the creosote ignites.

It's definitely possible to have a chimney fire with an EPA stove . . . just like it's entirely possible to burn relatively cleanly with the old stoves . . . it's just that with the old stoves you're not "penalized" as much as the new stoves . . . with a new woodstove it's almost impossible to get the fire going and sustained if you're burning unseasoned wood . . . as a result folks with these stoves soon learn that it really is important to burn seasoned wood and burn at hot enough temps to keep the fire going . . . not to mention the fact that you can't close off the air supply all the way.

Finally, it's been said before . . . but I'll say it again . . . if you don't want me or my fellow brothers and sisters visiting your house . . . burn seasoned wood (i.e. cut, split and stacked for 9-12 months or checked with a moisture meter), burn at the proper temps (which usually means hotter temps than what you may have been doing with the older stoves) and check your chimney frequently and clean it whenever necessary.

Had one - 30 years ago. Old Franklin stove with pipe running out of the basement and up the outside wall. Didn't know or care much about dry wood or creosote. Had a couple crappy logs in the stove and suddenly smoke just started billowing into the room. Grabbed the tongs and pulled out the logs and carried them out into the snow. Whatever fire was in the chimney was minor and it went out quickly. Sold the house shortly thereafter.

ok now that i've had the crap scared out of me with some the the stories here, I need to know (ballpark) what amount of creosote would make people worry (as far as the amount of stuff that comes out of the chimney when you run the brush thru it)? I installed my stove last year - burned on weekends thru the winter (which is about 6 months here) - when I ran the brush down the chimney this spring I got probably about enough powdery dry stuff to fill a coffee mug - maybe a bit more - that's it. I assumed that's not bad. This is an airtight EPA stove with 6" flue with no bends and total run is about 16' (and pretty good wood - at least 1 year old maple - some chunks as old as 4 or 5 years - all cut and split as the trees were knocked down on the property over time).

I've been thinking once a season is reasonable but now I'm worried

bag of hammers said:

when I ran the brush down the chimney this spring I got probably about enough powdery dry stuff to fill a coffee mug - maybe a bit more - that's it.
I've been thinking once a season is reasonable but now I'm worried

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No worries, you're fine.

I had one the first time I fired up the p.o.s. heatilator unit in my basement. It also was the last time I used it. It finally started to heat pretty good when the flames were coming out of the chimney though! Thats why its currently getting torn out and replaced with a free stander in the main living area.

We had a old smoke dragon that was a slammer installation. The flue was a mess and we'd have two fires a year. They would usually start when burning a slug of old cardboard. It was real worrysome and I didn't know if I was going to burn the house down or not. Last year we pulled everything out and installed a seven inch insulated liner with block off plates. Everything is much more civilized now and we don't worry about it like we used to. Good thing too, we live far out in the remote country with fire department response times on the order of a hour or so. David

They just love running those sirens, and letting every body in the neighbor hood, know you screwed up.

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Thats not very nice :-S and not at all true, as firefighterjake explained very well.

I remember as a kid having one at my house, and the fire department arrived, plopped the ladders on the roof, scurried up, and...dumped Morton salt (someone else said baking soda, but I thought it was salt but could be wrong) down the chimney! Put it right out. I failed Chemistry multiple times in college, so not the best to explain what kind of reaction takes place, but basically something that starves the fire of oxygen.

Now that I am my own man and woodburner of many years, I still stick to the tried and true method of an intentional occasional "mini flue fire" to keep build-up to a minimum. A close of the stove door and/or damping it down and it is out in seconds. I have a ss liner insulated with vermiculite inside of a double-bricked chimney. Yea, I have some build-up. I buy probably 75% of my 8-10 cords burned per winter, and inevitably some of that is going to be less than perfect as far as seasoning. Adjust, adapt, overcome.

...and with all due respect to my firefighter brethren (I used to run Rescue), there are certain volunteer firefighters (being generous with that term) that do like their lights and sirens, but fighting fires, not so much (I ain't goin' in there!)... Not painting a broad brush, but just saying, based on local experience unfortunately...

madrone said:

bag of hammers said:

when I ran the brush down the chimney this spring I got probably about enough powdery dry stuff to fill a coffee mug - maybe a bit more - that's it.
I've been thinking once a season is reasonable but now I'm worried

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No worries, you're fine.

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thanks madrone - as is the case with some of the other posters, the place is way out in the sticks - volunteer fire and rescue - with a long way to go to get to us - so I am extra paranoid

bag of hammers said:

I am extra paranoid

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Beats the alternative! It sure doesn't hurt anything to peek in there on a regular basis anyway.

I lived in the smaller portion of a farmhouse broken into two apts. The other guy had a chimney fire in his side of the house. He had a big fisher freestanding teed into the wall. There was a cleanout down underneath in the chimney but apparently nobody cleaned it. Central chimney not in great shape, balloon frame 100 yr old house. We were lucky he smelled it burning through the mortar, it had (just barely) started burning wood into the frame or floor. Firefighter hurt his back under the house but otherwise all was OK. Lucky. I was not thrilled to have to get out of bed to sirens on a weekend morning, should have realized how very serious it might have been. Tended to think of it as a separate house; it was NOT!

I had just one over 25 years ago. Before I became a volunteer firefighter.
Now I put them out!

Inspect and clean your chimney flues.

Take no shortcuts. Burn safely.

I haven't but my friend has had a few. He first thought it was the wood but that was the first season he had it. Now he thinks it may be the flu installation. He is getting the guy who installed mine to take a look. He had 2 last year and 2 this year.