Hogwildz said:
Biff_CT2 said:
BeGreen said:
In the case of a chimney fire, excessive draft is a symptom, right? The problem is a dirty flue. You don't solve the problem by any of Gulland's 4 prescribed solutions. You solve it with a chimney brush and burning drier wood.
Well, no - his problem was embers being sucked up the flue
CORRECT(not so much sucked as drafted as all stoves do). If he had creosote burning in his flue, he appears to have been content to let it burn
(HIGHLY DOUBT ANYONE IS CONTENT OR HAS INTENT TO HAVE A CHIMNEY FIRE , AND AGAIN THE OP OBVIOUSLY IS NOT CONTENT AS THEY POSTED A QUESTION OF CONCERN ABOUT IT), his only concern appears to have been the embers leaving the firebox.
(EMBERS AT TIMES AND UNDER SOME CIRCUMSTANCES CAN DRAFT UP THE STACK, HENCE THE USE OF A SCREEN ON THE CAP, WHICH IS MANDATED IN SOME STATES & AREAS).
Several of Gulland's solutions, such as the damper assembly arrangeable to obstruct the flue,
( DAMPERS DO NOT COMPLETELY CLOSE, SO EMBERS CAN STILL GET PAST THEM AND GO UP, DRAFT REMEMBER? IF YOU COULD STOP THE DRAFT ENTIRELY, GOOD LUCK WITH THAT SMOLDERING MESS AND I AM SURE THE CREO BUILD UP UP TOP WOULD TRIPLE).would have solved that particular problem. A chimey brush, in contrast, would have been of very little assistance - particularly given the active fire(s).
CHIMNEY BRUSHES CLEAN THE CREOSOTE HENCE, NO CREO, NO STACK FIRE, PRETTY SIMPLE. AND IN CASE YOU MISINTERPRETED, CHIMNEY BRUSHES ARE USED ON COLD STACKS.
There is no one fix for every similar problem. Read all the books you want, and watch all the videos to inform yourself. But nothing is gospel.
A stack kept clean, by both sweeping, good burning practices, and good dry wood, will not be catching ablaze if an ember makes it's way up there.
Todays lesson is concluded. Enjoy the warmth.
"Chimney brushes are used on cold chimneys" LOL (though I appreciate you clearing that up).
My point is a bit different.
If you understand draft as influenced by a group of factors - some of which you control and some of which you do not, then you're on the path to being to being able to operate you're stove well. The article I linked to explains some of the factors, and relates the factors to how a particular set up functions.
It is also a great starting point for chimney setup application for a mobile device.
One of the biggest problems with wood burning is having to rely on an expert's intuition and/or experience (real or imaginary) when selecting a stove setup initially. In my experience, a disturbing;y large proportion of these folks are full of crap or motivated by a quick payday. I'd love to see these folks (stove shop salesman/sweep 'experts') get replaced by a software application that a user can easily use to determine how well a given chimney/liner/stove combination works with their specific chimney and expected range of atmospheric and firing conditions.
A great place to start would be putting the table from the article and some what-if functionality into a cell phone app. Then you wouldn't have to rely on some bullshit artist behind a stove shop counter telling you that the manual is wrong and that it's fine to install an insert in a pre-fab fireplace (subject of another thread). Might actually save a life or two in the process...