Fireplaces, Heating Stoves, Flues and Chimneys - Smokey smell though FP not in use
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CanadianGuy
11-02-05, 07:34 PM
We moved into a century home during the summer. Kept getting a strong smoke smell from the fireplace. Finally stopped it by sealing the opening with plastic. Had a chimney sweep in today. He filled a supermarket bag with all the stuff he got loose -- said the chimney probably hadn't been cleaned for some time. Tonight I started getting the smell again, though less than before. :wall: (Instead of a damper, there's a spring-loaded cap at the top of the chimney. I've got the pull-wire for it as tight as can be.) Any suggestions for how to stop the smell? Thanks.
bigbry
11-02-05, 10:30 PM
Well, you have a downdrafting chimney. Check the damper in the chimney to make sure it closes tightly. If not, see if there is slack in your pull down line, if so, shorten it.
Could the draft and smell be coming from the clean out on the floor of your firebox? If so seal that with fiberglass insulation.
Century old? Probably not lined. Check for loose bricks or cracks and such if my other suggestions are taken care of.
Glass doors are also a good way to stop the downdraft as well.
BB
Could the draft and smell be coming from the clean out on the floor of your firebox? If so seal that with fiberglass insulation.
Century old? Probably not lined. Check for loose bricks or cracks and such if my other suggestions are taken care of.
Glass doors are also a good way to stop the downdraft as well.
BB
CanadianGuy
11-03-05, 06:35 AM
Thanks BB. I cleared the cleanout below the fire chamber. We had the chimney rebuilt from the roofline up and the mason identified no other problems. I will tinker some more with the pull-down wire and, to the chagrin of my penny-pinching wife, look into the cost of glass doors.
My wife suggested cutting a piece of styrofoam to stick horizontally into the flue when not in use. I'd have a sign hanging down warning us to remove the board before starting a fire.
My wife suggested cutting a piece of styrofoam to stick horizontally into the flue when not in use. I'd have a sign hanging down warning us to remove the board before starting a fire.
CanadianGuy
11-06-05, 03:14 PM
FWIW, here's what I've done to hopefully solve this problem.
I couldn't find ready-made glass fireplace doors that fit because:
1. The opening is not flat. There's a line of bricks around it that stick out 1.5 inches
2. The opening is not rectangular. Each upper corner has a curve.
3. The chamber is not wide enough to enable me to position the door frame over the bricks that curve around the opening and jut out. In other words, the smallest unit I found was still not flush against the bricks.
The fireplace store in my little town said custom-made doors start at about $800 and take six to eight weeks! :eek:
So, early today I took two pieces of scrap plexiglass and cut them to fit within the opening, as though they were doors. I taped them together with wide Scotch tape to seal the seam. (A new piece to fit without a seam would have cost $25) I got two six-foot lengths of the spongey foam insulation that goes around half-inch water lines and put it around the plexiglass. This created a fairly rigid see-through cover with a soft perimeter that could conform to the ins and outs of the bricks.
I pushed the unit into the front of the opening. The pipe wrap's charcoal color blends in with the worn and dirty red bricks. With a black wire freestanding screen in front, the assembly is barely noticeable -- and looks 1,000 times better than the 6 mil plastic and duct tape I had up. Today has been extremely windy and so far we haven't noticed any smoke smell. :)
When we want to have a fire, we'll pull out the assembly and then push it back in after the chamber has cooled. I'll probably add two black knobs to make this easy.
I couldn't find ready-made glass fireplace doors that fit because:
1. The opening is not flat. There's a line of bricks around it that stick out 1.5 inches
2. The opening is not rectangular. Each upper corner has a curve.
3. The chamber is not wide enough to enable me to position the door frame over the bricks that curve around the opening and jut out. In other words, the smallest unit I found was still not flush against the bricks.
The fireplace store in my little town said custom-made doors start at about $800 and take six to eight weeks! :eek:
So, early today I took two pieces of scrap plexiglass and cut them to fit within the opening, as though they were doors. I taped them together with wide Scotch tape to seal the seam. (A new piece to fit without a seam would have cost $25) I got two six-foot lengths of the spongey foam insulation that goes around half-inch water lines and put it around the plexiglass. This created a fairly rigid see-through cover with a soft perimeter that could conform to the ins and outs of the bricks.
I pushed the unit into the front of the opening. The pipe wrap's charcoal color blends in with the worn and dirty red bricks. With a black wire freestanding screen in front, the assembly is barely noticeable -- and looks 1,000 times better than the 6 mil plastic and duct tape I had up. Today has been extremely windy and so far we haven't noticed any smoke smell. :)
When we want to have a fire, we'll pull out the assembly and then push it back in after the chamber has cooled. I'll probably add two black knobs to make this easy.