Bird in the Chimney!!

[soupy1957]

Had the wood stove crankin all day on Saturday, but Sunday it was warm up here.

Sitting in my Lazy Boy, watching the tube in the afternoon, and I heard a fluttering sound coming from the direction of the wood stove.

I figured it was the new kitten, screwing around, and glanced "half interested" in the direction of the stove.

Lo and behold, a Sparrow was fluttering around in the wood stove! Obviously it came down the pipe.

Question: I thought that all chimney covers (I have one) have screens on them????

(to answer YOUR question: yes, I did get it out. I opened the door and let it fly around until it flew upstairs and went in the bathroom. I went in and shut the door, and opened the window, and PRESTO .....he flew away).

 

[wingsfan]

We had a blackbird get into our stove sometime during the summer. Our stove is in the basement where we don't frequent in the summer months, so he wasn't able to fly out. We had to lift him out with the ash shovel.

 

[Phoenix Hatchling]

We had a blackbird get into our stove sometime during the summer. Our stove is in the basement where we don't frequent in the summer months, so he wasn't able to fly out. We had to lift him out with the ash shovel.

It's the smell that can drive you nuts until you find it

 

[colin.p]

I went through 5 seasons of letting birds out of my stove to fly around the room until they went out the open window. This past spring an epiphany struck while I was making coffee. My chimney runs up the outside of the house, so I took the "clean-out" cover off the bottom of the chimney (left it off) and put the 6 inch plastic cover off my Folgers coffee can up against the horizontal pipe running through the wall. This way, when the inevitable bird (usually a half dozen or so over the course of the summer) decides to fall down the chimney, it falls right through and out the bottom, no worse for wear plus I get a good chimney cleaning to boot.

Now obviously, this only works in the non-heating season but I didn't have one bird go into the stove this year.

 

[Nick Mystic]

When I had my old insert installed slammer style into a huge 18" x 13" clay tile flue I once had an entire colony of bats set up shop down the chimney right above the smoke shelf. When I looked down the chimney from up on the roof I couldn't tell what was 20' down with my flashlight until I made a noise and they all began moving! They were grouped in a ball holding on to each other and formed a mass about the size of a volleyball. I had a time getting them out. I tried lighting a smokey fire (low heat so as not to cook them), but they resisted taking flight. In the end, I waited until nightfall when they left to go feed and then capped the chimney so they couldn't return. I built a bat house and attached it to the side of the chimney for them, but while I saw them flying at dusk they never moved in.

 

[DougA]

All the chimney cap screens I've seen are not bird proof. They do not cover the opening fully. Get a piece of hardware mesh that covers the entire open area then fasten it with wire not zip ties.

 

[CenterTree]

^^ My cap is bird proof. (with mesh wire all around). At least it LOOKS bird proof.

 

[CenterTree]

I went through 5 seasons of letting birds out of my stove to fly around the room until they went out the open window. This past spring an epiphany struck while I was making coffee. My chimney runs up the outside of the house, so I took the "clean-out" cover off the bottom of the chimney (left it off) and put the 6 inch plastic cover off my Folgers coffee can up against the horizontal pipe running through the wall. This way, when the inevitable bird (usually a half dozen or so over the course of the summer) decides to fall down the chimney, it falls right through and out the bottom, no worse for wear plus I get a good chimney cleaning to boot.

Now obviously, this only works in the non-heating season but I didn't have one bird go into the stove this year.

Good idea, until you forget to remove the lid next season a try to start a fire.

 

[BobUrban]

I have had a few show up in the stove in the summer time. I just reach in and grab them gently and let them out the door.

The bat thing would not be so easy. had a few in my attic and had to build a one way door out of mesh, give them a few nights to clear out and then seal it off. Birds and bats are good - just not in my house.

 

[firefighterjake]

7 years burning . . . and no issues with bats, birds or bugs in the woodstove or chimney.

 

[soupy1957]

All the chimney cap screens I've seen are not bird proof. They do not cover the opening fully. Get a piece of hardware mesh that covers the entire open area then fasten it with wire not zip ties.

Thanks This is the kind of feedback I was looking for.

 

[Badger]

This reminds me of a similar story my coworker told me. He is very much an animal lover and doesn't like to see animals suffer. Any way, he has an insert in his house and he lives in a heavily wooded area and has trees that go right up to his roof. One spring a mother racoon decided it should have babies in the chimney cap. (To be honest I don't get this part of the story... How does she not just fall down from the get go... Where does she stay?)

He noticed them when he went up to do his spring chimney sweep. Feeling sorry for them, he didn't kick them out but would climb a ladder up to his roof ever day with a bowl of dog food and a bowl of water. This was all well and good when the raccoons were small, but after a while they would run around on his roof at all hours of the night and he was afraid they might start damaging something.

So he decided they had wore out their welcome and it was time to peacefully evict them. He waited until he saw the mother climb down and he climbed on the roof with his hockey helmet and stick with the idea that he would coax them away from the cap and then fill in the area that the squatters were staying (I don't remember with what). As he walks toward the young raccoons all four of them panic and jump down his uncleaned liner and he hears them tumble down into the basement.

At this point he is freaking out thinking that he just hurt a baby racoon and ran down the ladder and into the basement to rescue the young coons. He opens the door to his insert and four animals jump out that are completely black and start running all over his white carpet, couch, climbing up curtains, etc. Apparently, it took him a good 10 minutes of yelling at his wife/ neighbors to heard them outside and he ended up with black trails all over the house.

 

[smokedragon]

Can't say we've experienced this one. I clean my chimney after our last fire for the year (in the spring). I always wrap the cap in saran wrap so that we get no downdrafts (smoky smell in the house) or pests in the chimney. After we clean the stove, we put a big note inside "REMOVE SARAN WRAP BEFORE LIGHTING". It has kept ours pest free.

 

[Hogwildz]

Some caps do not come with screens.
I just replaced my screen with new 1/2" wire screen.
Fits from pipe to underside of the cap. No bird issues.

 

[soupy1957]

The picture painted, of a guy on his roof in a hockey mask and caring a hockey stick, causes me to believe that some well-meaning but concerned neighbor, might've called the insane asylum crew (lol)!

Saran Wrap, eh?!

 

[FionaD]

When we had our installation checked recently the guy who did it recommended that we remove the wire mesh from the chimney cap, becuase it would fill with creosote pretty quickly and could eventually block the smoke outlet quite a bit.

I was surprised and a little concerned... Surprised because all caps of the kind we have seem to have the wire mesh as standard, which leads me to think it's surely OK. a little concerned becuase of the possibility of birds getting in - especially in spring time when they are looking for places to build their nests.

....and I have a real thing about birds.. I love them.

I wonder if the guy in question was being over cautious, perhaps his view of creosote clogging of the mesh has been coloured by the fact that most people burn their wood inefficiently? What do you think?

 

[wvstriper]

One August day I decided to clean the chimney and stove before the next burning season. I disconnected the stove pipe and noticed it was cleaner than usual. I next opened the stove and was surprised at how clean the inside was, in fact, there was no ash at all! The funny thing was all of the ash had collected in the ash pan and just one small burnt log had been left in the firebox. I had not cleaned the stove and it wasn't a log

 

[Phoenix Hatchling]

One August day I decided to clean the chimney and stove before the next burning season. I disconnected the stove pipe and noticed it was cleaner than usual. I next opened the stove and was surprised at how clean the inside was, in fact, there was no ash at all! The funny thing was all of the ash had collected in the ash pan and just one small burnt log had been left in the firebox. I had not cleaned the stove and it wasn't a log

How in the world could you not have smelled that! We had a squirrel get stuck in our chimney when I was young, and the stink could knock a buzzard off a wagon o crap!

 

[Highbeam]

You can buy your chimney caps with or without screens. My last one was bought withOUT the screen. I have never had a bird, bug, or racoon issue but I have had the thing plug up with light brown crunchy junk on top of a clean flue. I choose not to filter my smoke.

 

[Flatbedford]

I have had three birds in my wood stove in the past few years. Getting them out is always an adventure.

 

[FionaD]

You can buy your chimney caps with or without screens. My last one was bought withOUT the screen. I have never had a bird, bug, or racoon issue but I have had the thing plug up with light brown crunchy junk on top of a clean flue. I choose not to filter my smoke.

So you think the guy has a valid point and I should leave the mesh off?

 

[Highbeam]

So you think the guy has a valid point and I should leave the mesh off?

I have no screens in the caps of either chimney, the screens that can come in the simpson (duravent) caps can clog nomatter how good your wood or technique is. I see no benefit to filtering my smoke anyways.

 

[bholler]

We try to leave screens off of any wood stove liner caps we put in but there are lots of times we have problems with critters and need to install screens. We use 3/4" expanded metal screens and if you are burning correctly they usually don't clog. It is hard to say why some houses have trouble with birds squirrels or raccoons while others near them do not The only thing i can say is if your neighbor had a raccoon they chased out of their chimney you should put a good screen on to because they will just move next door into your chimney. We have chased them around several developments till all of the chimneys had caps. But they usually only bother with fireplace flues not smaller wood stove ones.

 

[bholler]

the screens that can come in the simpson (duravent) caps can clog nomatter how good your wood or technique is

Yeah their screen is to small

 

[Highbeam]

Yeah their screen is to small

I have heard of folks cutting out some of the mesh to get a screen small enough to keep birds out but big enough to not clog. WHat are you trying to accomplish with a screen? Do you really expect sparks to shoot out of your chimney that are robust enough to stay hot all the way to your roof? Floating trash being burnt, and birds, are the only reasons I can see for a screen.