Is my chimney vent causing my downdraft problems?

[begreen]

Begreen, is siphoning when the attic flue (the one on the left in the pic) sucks in smoke from the stove flue (on the right)? Our house has two separate chimneys, which are far apart. The other wood stove is on a lower floor on the other side of the house, and it draws well- but now I wonder if it is causing negative pressure on the difficult chimney.

I need a clearer picture of where the chimney's are and what floor they service. Also needed is the house layout itself. Is it all 2 story or is there a 1 story addition with a fireplace that is joined to a 2 story house?

 

[bigealta]

Is your other stove running when you are getting the downdraft?

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I did that years ago when trying to start up the masonry fireplace after the furnace konked out at my then girlfriends house...made the whole house stink like burnt newspaper (I tried more than once too) never did take off for me...I gave up, defeated.
Years later it occurred to me that I never made sure the damper was open probably wasn't...I still feel like a dork even admitting it, all these years later

Playing with fire has a learning curve! Lol

 

[stoveliker]

The beauty of a propane torch is that if the draft doesn't reverse into the correct direction, you don't have newspaper smoke in your room.
It's clean. No smoke.
The alcohol gel will be similarly clean, though it's a bit slower.