How to make a damper idiot proof?

[chimneyballoon]

I had a customer that runs a B&B;ask me about how to make his dampers idiot proof and I thought i would run it past you guys to see if a good idea pops out. Below is his quesiton and an attached image. I cant really answer questions about this application since I am just the messanger but the person who asked the question "NW" will monitor this post. He was just a little leery to post the question himself (You guys can be intimidating you know, so be nice now):

>"I run a small country inn, with fireplaces downstairs in the common rooms and in some of the bedrooms. Ten total.
>
> I need help coming up with a way to indicate when a flue is open or
> closed.
>
> I do not want to always have to reach up and open/shut the sooty,
> dirty
> flap.
> And don't want guests trying to light a fire when the flu is closed --
> filling the place with smoke and setting off the alarms.
>
> A plaque or sign that flips (or is positioned by anyone) is clearly
> unreliable
>
> Do you have a suggestion. - Signed, NW"

 

[Prada]

I thought fire burners were illegal in bedrooms?
Anyhow if I were you I would have a big sign next to it saying 'Warning....Call management for instructions BEFORE using this appliance' lol

 

[fossil]

Is the place seasonal, or does he have guests year-round? If it's seasonal, could he simply leave all the dampers open for the season? Does he want to shut the dampers when the fireplaces are not in use to minimize heat loss up the chimneys? Do the dampers have some sort of pull-chain on them as shown in your diagram, or are they the "lever" type? Can he pre-screen his potential guests for IQ? (OK...just kidding on the last question!). Rick

 

[karri0n]

The attached pic looks like a decent solution...

 

[DeePee]

There are cast iron plaques which can be attached to the damper control arm or chain that say "Damper Closed". When the damper is closed, the plaque is suspended into the fireplace, when open its hidden behind the door frame / lintel. I have no idea how well they hold up, or if the average person would realize the significance. I used to hang a piece of copper wire from the arm to remind me to close it when I walked by.

The manufacturer is Niagara Castings. Check their website.

5438-PBS Damper Open / Damper Closed Hanging Sign $14.95

Best regards,
DP

 

[chimneyballoon]

NW, gave me this post to put up here...

"5438-PBS Damper Open / Damper Closed Hanging Sign $14.95

We have 10 fireplaces which need signs to indicate if a deamper ios open or closed.
The mechanism in these turn of the century chiminies are cast iron (I suppose) flaps. Some position to close when you push, others when you pull)


How would one attach your signs?
Do the come with haradware?


Do you have some suggestions?
Ones that don't necessarily involve removing the flap, are preferred.


Thank you for your time and assistance on this.


Credit goes to Jason of Chimney Balloon USA, who posted my problem on this customer blog and lead me to you. And to DP [Osburn 2200 insert Impending wood buffer under-run], who was the lead.


I'm looking forward to hearing from you, NW"

 

[DeePee]

NW, gave me this post to put up here...

"5438-PBS Damper Open / Damper Closed Hanging Sign $14.95

We have 10 fireplaces which need signs to indicate if a deamper ios open or closed.
The mechanism in these turn of the century chiminies are cast iron (I suppose) flaps. Some position to close when you push, others when you pull)


How would one attach your signs?
Do the come with haradware?


Do you have some suggestions?
Ones that don't necessarily involve removing the flap, are preferred.


Thank you for your time and assistance on this.


Credit goes to Jason of Chimney Balloon USA, who posted my problem on this customer blog and lead me to you. And to DP [Osburn 2200 insert Impending wood buffer under-run], who was the lead.


I'm looking forward to hearing from you, NW"

Glad I could provide some assistance. I am not involved with the manufacturer in any manner, I just happened to spot such a device in the stove shop last time I was there. I googled around for it and found the Niagara Castings website had pricing. From the very brief look I had, I recall there being a loop at the top of the sign. Not sure what type of hardware was included. The best thing to do would be to get in touch with Niagara Castings, I am sure they could provide a lot more help than I can. I will PM you with the contact details.

Best regards,
DP

 

[edthedawg]

Not sure it was answered, but are the pictured cables / chains already in place?

And you say "Some position to close when you push, others when you pull" which makes me think you have a variety of different types here - it's going to call for a variety of different solutions.

We call this type of problem "Mistake proofing" and unfortunately, unless you leave the dampers fixed open, you don't really have a good way of doing this without some fairly major modifications (i.e. spring-load the damper, run the cable down to a platform that the firewood sits on, and lifting the wood allows the spring to retract, opening the damper...) That's a fairly Rube-Goldberg-esque solution, but you get my drift...