Double Sided Fireplace Problem

[Bubby4113]

Hi all -

We recently bought a place in Western, NC and are having a hard time with the fireplace. I had it inspected, the chimney cap replaced, and it appears as though it is built high enough (or least within a foot of the 10ft rule for chimneys). I’ve been told the flute size is plenty large to draft.

In any case it’s a double sided fireplace between the living room and master with a gas starter. We only use if from the living room side, but it seem to eject smoke into the master side through the small openings in the glass door.

I’ve tried heating up the chute first with fat wood first before putting oak wood in (reportedly dried out before delivery).

While the smoke is better, it’s still bad to the point of occasionally setting off smoke alarms. I’d rather just close off the master side with glass to preserve the asthetic but can’t seem to find anyone to do it.

Of note, you can see the years of soot on the master side stone veneer. Also, The glass doors have slight gaps between the panels and on the ends

Any ideas??

 

[Bubby4113]

Bump

 

[mkramer0820]

Hi, just as a warning I am absolutely not an expert on this topic. However, somethings you may want to have someone look for before doing any work to the fireplace is whether or not it was constructed properly.

I too purchased a home with a 2 sided fire place (see through). However I knew before hand there were smoke issues. After buying the home, we called our local chimney sweep to take a look. Before he came we mentioned it being see through. What we were told is that there is a good chance our chimney was originally a single sided chimney that a previous owner likely opened up on the rear side. After a quick inspection, plus a good clean, he confirmed that was the case. Even though damper and flue were quite large, the construction of a single sided should never be made into a double unless you are willing to pay a big chunk of money for a proper fix.

Given your pictures I would assume, although I can be wrong, your flue opening is in the rear by the master. Which could mean its not a proper convert. A fix to this is not simple. And if your case is like mine, and you wish to keep the aesthetic value, it will be very hard to find a proper person to fix it.

The reason why you might not be able to find a person to fix it with glass is that a incorrect fireplace can literally cause tempered glass to explode when sealed off due to the fire being close to the area you want to seal and consistently burning there.

If you find out your in the situation is like mine I can give you some ideas that we were given. However, none of the solutions solve the problem the way you want except one of them which according to my guy was only done successfully once in his 40 years of chimney sweeping.

Regardless,

best of luck, and I hope your chimney is better off than mine.

 

[Bubby4113]

Hi, just as a warning I am absolutely not an expert on this topic. However, somethings you may want to have someone look for before doing any work to the fireplace is whether or not it was constructed properly.

I too purchased a home with a 2 sided fire place (see through). However I knew before hand there were smoke issues. After buying the home, we called our local chimney sweep to take a look. Before he came we mentioned it being see through. What we were told is that there is a good chance our chimney was originally a single sided chimney that a previous owner likely opened up on the rear side. After a quick inspection, plus a good clean, he confirmed that was the case. Even though damper and flue were quite large, the construction of a single sided should never be made into a double unless you are willing to pay a big chunk of money for a proper fix.

Given your pictures I would assume, although I can be wrong, your flue opening is in the rear by the master. Which could mean its not a proper convert. A fix to this is not simple. And if your case is like mine, and you wish to keep the aesthetic value, it will be very hard to find a proper person to fix it.

The reason why you might not be able to find a person to fix it with glass is that a incorrect fireplace can literally cause tempered glass to explode when sealed off due to the fire being close to the area you want to seal and consistently burning there.

If you find out your in the situation is like mine I can give you some ideas that we were given. However, none of the solutions solve the problem the way you want except one of them which according to my guy was only done successfully once in his 40 years of chimney sweeping.

Regardless,

best of luck, and I hope your chimney is better off than mine.

Thank you so much. Yes I would love ideas. My number is 706-877-9030

I have no idea how to tell if this is a single sided or double sided fireplace chimney. It was done by the previous owner, whom I believe bought the house in foreclosure 10-15 years ago and finished it. It was unfinished except for the structure, so I’m assuming the chimney was done???? But I believe he bought the insert.

Our current plan is to extend the chimney up a few ft, as it appears to be level or maybe only slightly above the peak of the roof (within 10 ft).

I’d love other ideas.

 

[begreen]

Double-sided fireplaces often have problems with smoke spillage. They are frequently poorly designed and the flue is often undersized for the combined area of the two openings.

 

[mkramer0820]

Thank you so much. Yes I would love ideas. My number is 706-877-9030

I have no idea how to tell if this is a single sided or double sided fireplace chimney. It was done by the previous owner, whom I believe bought the house in foreclosure 10-15 years ago and finished it. It was unfinished except for the structure, so I’m assuming the chimney was done???? But I believe he bought the insert.

Our current plan is to extend the chimney up a few ft, as it appears to be level or maybe only slightly above the peak of the roof (within 10 ft).

I’d love other ideas.

As Begreen stated, they often have problems with smoke spillage. First determine if it was meant to be a proper see through. If you can determine this for sure, you can try to trouble shoot it, but doesn't guarantee it will work. If its like mine where it was a single converted to a see through its a different ball game from what I understand.

Some trouble shooting things you can try are prime the flue - burn a candle or some paper in the flue for a bit and see if you can feel a upwards draft. Use a taller grate for the wood to get more air under it. Try a top down lighting approach. Use seasoned wood that has time to dry out. Wood that didn't have time to dry out wont burn as fast and make a draft more difficult.

 

[danham]

An insert may be less expensive than fixing chimney problems and it can work quite well with a double-sided fireplace. We quickly learned how bad double-sideds are: smoke and lousy heat. An insert fixed it and works really well.

-dan

 

[brickie]

I built one in the late eighties, and l can tell you that it requires a very specific damper, and a very large flue. I believe it was 20x20.

 

[LakeFire]

We have a see-through fireplace with glass doors and get smoke in the rooms. Although the smoke is not visible, our air purifier light is often red so we know the air quality is poor. Our chimney sweep just told us the damper is designed for a single fireplace but since it is mortared in place, he said replacing it is not a viable solution. He suggested either bricking over one side or buying high-temperature glass and sealing one side. I’m wondering if this is what you did, mkramer0820? He suggested a local glass company to see if they can fabricate and install a glass panel. Has anyone done this successfully? Thank you.

 

[FireplaceTreatments]

I guess no professionals have responded here, so I will.

Your fireplace is a prefabricated zero clearance see-through fireplace, so it cannot be the case that the damper was installed incorrectly or the chimney was meant for a single sided fireplace. This fireplace was built at a factory as a see through fireplace and then framed into your home with 2x4 construction and metal chimney designed for the see through fireplace.

It looks to me that you are burning it with the glass doors open on the living room side and closed on the bedroom side. This causes air to gush into the fireplace from the living room side, which blows smoke right through the spaces between the glass into the bedroom.

You need to burn your fires either with the doors open on both sides or closed on both sides so the air flowing into the fireplace is even and the majority of the smoke goes straight up the flue. You cannot burn it with one side open and the other closed. This will minimize the smoke problem, but not eliminate it completely as drafts in the room can cause air to be pushed through the fireplace.

Also, prefabricated fireplaces cannot be sealed off air tight, as that could cause them to overheat. Those spaces between the glass are part of the design that allows the fireplace to keep itself cool enough to be framed into the home with 2x4s. Hence the reason you cannot find a professional who will do it.

Bottom line, open the doors or close the doors on both sides.

 

[BillBurns]

Closing both sides of the fireplace sounds pretty right.