keeping flues open in the summer

[Echo Parking Lot]

Two wood stoves, an open fireplace and a beehive oven in the house. During the winter, I always keep the fireplace and beehive closed, unless we want a bit of ambience (willing to lost a little heat every once and a while for some spectacle). But in the summer should I continue to keep the flue closed? What about in the wood stoves? Should I open up the doors and let them draft or is that negligible for cooling the house, counterproductive even?

I’ve cast around for an answer to this question, but the answers almost uniformly assume you have central air.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I'd say the biggest worry is a squirrel or raccoon coming down an uncapped chimney. I know of a case of a mallard falling down one too.

 

[Ashful]

I keep mine closed. No sense in letting a continuous stream of fresh mid-Atlantic humidity into the house, only for the air-conditioning to fight it back all day long.

Also, as Limestone already noted, there are lots of reports of squirrels coming down chimneys. I had this happen to me in spring 2012, and he wrecked $650 in parts on my stove, to pay me back for the experience. Thankfully, the stove doors were closed, I can't imagine chasing a soot-covered squirrel around the house.

 

[brenndatomu]

I can't imagine chasing a soot-covered squirrel around the house.

Sounds like something from "National Lampoons summer vacation" movie

 

[EatenByLimestone]

With me, I was in the basement and heard scurrying in my father's coal stove. I reached for the handle, then stopped an inch away to rethink the issue. I came back in a couple days. Lots 9f birds and bats find their way down too, but they don't cause any damage.

 

[Ashful]

With me, I was in the basement and heard scurrying in my father's coal stove. I reached for the handle, then stopped an inch away to rethink the issue. I came back in a couple days. Lots 9f birds and bats find their way down too, but they don't cause any damage.

My father-in-law is not nearly as handy as he thinks he is, but I have to give him credit for giving me the idea to get the squirrel safely out of our stove. That idea was to drop a rope down the chimney, so the squirrel would have something to climb up and get out.

It didn't work the first day, until I wrapped the stove in a blanket, making everything inside dark except for the little bit of light coming down the chimney. Once the squirrel could see the literal "light at the end of the tunnel", he found his way out. I wish I were there to see him make his exit out the top of the chimney, but it happened while I was at work.

 

[stoveliker]

My father-in-law is not nearly as handy as he thinks he is, but I have to give him credit for giving me the idea to get the squirrel safely out of our stove. That idea was to drop a rope down the chimney, so the squirrel would have something to climb up and get out.

It didn't work the first day, until I wrapped the stove in a blanket, making everything inside dark except for the little bit of light coming down the chimney. Once the squirrel could see the literal "light at the end of the tunnel", he found his way out. I wish I were there to see him make his exit out the top of the chimney, but it happened while I was at work.

That is one creative idea! I thought to "file that one away for possible future use", but then again, I have a horizontal crock so no light visible at the end of the tunnel and hard to get the rope in there (without the critter jumping out when the stove pipe is off...)