smoke coming out my ash clean out door

[nrcrash]

periodically I have smoke coming out of the ash clean out door on the bottom of my chimney during a burn. I think it is occurring when there is some bridging since I am using wood which is wetter then I would like to burn.... It was a long winter..... Is the wet wood and bridging causing to much smoke for the chimney to handle and it is just pushing out the bottom of the chimney? Should I try sealing the door to prevent this?

 

[DaveBP]

I would take a look through your chimney if you can to see if it's blocked with soot and creosote.

If the chimney is straight you can usually take a small mirror in your hand and look up through that clean-out door during the day and hopefully see the surface of the chimney liner all the way to sunlight. It helps to have the light off in the basement for a bit to let your eyes adjust to the dimness.

A chimney won't have to be constricted much to have a big effect on the draft.

 

[Tennman]

Poor wood and idling clogs our flue cap spark arrestor screen. In the past with lots of idling and less than ideal wood I needed to get up on my roof and clean the screen as much as 3 times/season. When clogged it obviously hurts performance and see more smoke rollout when loading. The soot falls off with a brush and by bumping. Just not so easy to get up there. When I can't see daylight thru the screen I know it's time.