chimney plug
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Ashful
Minister of Fire
Old bath towel, wad of fiberglass batt insulation, etc. Just leave a nice note for yourself (or your next of kin) in the stove, so you don't smoke out the house when lighting that first fire in the fall.
JA600L
Minister of Fire
If you disassemble things you could use a tee cap but the easiest is just to stuff something in there. For cleaning we use a trash bag stuffed with insulation. But really in most cases there is absolutely no need to seal it off anyway
mepellet
Minister of Fire
If you want a good cap with a decent deal you can use a Jim cap. It's a rubber cap with a 5/16tightening nut. They are usually used as temporary caps on waste pipe. Not sure if Home Depot / or basic hard ware store would have one but any plumbing supply shop would.
Ashful
Minister of Fire
Unless your chimney back-drafts smoke smell into the house, mostly only an issue with basement installs, why would you want to plug the chimney in summer? Shut the stove doors, close the air control, and relax.
I've heard plumbers call them Fernco caps. But I want a plug, not a cap.
Such as?
Chimney Balloon: (broken link removed to http://www.chimneyballoon.us/catalog/item/2257305/1692971.htm)
TimfromMA
Minister of Fire
Lol ya I am a plumber by trade. Fernco Jim cap same thing just different brands. Ya a balloon maybe your best bet for a plug.
Too bad 9" is the smallest they make. I'll bet if I put the 9" in a 6" chimney it won't end up being air tight. I think just a disc with a gasket on the edge would be best.
Plumbing balloons come in 6" just don't over pressure the balloon against the pipe or you could blow out the pipe. (broken link removed to http://www.oatey.com/products/pneumatic-test-balls/test-balls/multi-size-test-ball-plugs)
Those are intended for short term tests. I want this to seal for months.
Definitely not a long term solution.
What we all need is to be as energy efficient as possible.
I get bit of dampness on the floor of the stove. Those summer blowing downpours get under the screenless cap. Also in the spring I get blue birds. My plan was to drop a 5 gallon bucket over the top, but never did. I wouldn't want to plug it up with a balloon. It would restrict the air flow that would dry it out.
And how will plugging the pipe during the summer help with that?. Really you will have little to no air moving through the stove if you close it up. Believe me you are worrying about another problem that does not exist. And like xman said that tiny bit of air movement is not a bad thing.
If that were true, the stove would not burn at all when the door is closed and the damper is shut. But it obviously does.
That is because the heat differential causes draft with out that heat differential there is no draft. That is why you had trouble establishing draft when it was warm outside. You do realize that to tight a house in the summer can cause lots of issues. And besides if you are pushing being as energy efficient as possible do what i do in the summer and open the windows then that tiny amount of air moving through the stove wont matter in the least.
I work in and around stoves and fireplaces every day. In the summer even with the door and damper wide open there usually is very little air moving thought the chimney at all. If you really want to do it go ahead the only problem it can cause in condensation in the stove and chimney which can slightly shorten their lifespan. but it really is unnecessary unless you are getting bad down drafts
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I've been blocking the liner at the top for the last several years. On a hot day, the stack effect of the house draws warm, humid air down the chimney and it condenses in the stove...more so if you run AC and the stove is cool. You don't want water in your stove; It will rust. Granted, probably not a lot, but I don't like the idea. Now, on my soapstone stoves, the creo/water would seep out around the edges of the stones and leave stains, which I would have to remove with steel wool. I block it off, then I can really relax.
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