Avoiding a smokeout

[ballibeg]

We get it when there's not a breath of wind and the flue is cold. The cold air in the chimney sinks and flows out of the stove. A blast of hot gases from loosely scrunched newspapers allowed to flare up over a firelighter is enough to shift that block of cold air from the flue and restore the usual direction of flow.

[Vespasian]

Like everyone else says, it is not your technique in lighting. We had the same problem when we had an open fire, you would be sitting there and suddenly get a down blast of smoke to fill the room, still an occasional problem now the woodburner is fitted, even though I fitted an elephant foot onto the new chimney pot. The old caretaker who had lived here 20 years said he had same problem, and I have noticed the open fires in the big house get downdraughts and their chimneys are moosive, so more of a wind problem I think.

 

If I had the patience I'd cobble something like a fan somewhere and blow the smoke up the chimney till the chimney gets a little heated.

might work, its somethin I've thought on!!..

[Peasgood]

Design or height of flue is probably the issue. I had the same years ago and it was cured by increasing the height of flue by a metre.

 

I hope you folk that have this problem have got carbon monoxide alarms in your houses. There really could be a serious risk of it and I advise fitting at least one. I wouldn't want you to wake up dead one morning.

[mickdundee]

We get this, especially if its really cold outside. When im ready ti light it I open a window a crack, then light a rolled up piece of newspaper and shove it right up through the flue opening at the back of our burner. it starts to draw that pretty quick then i can light the paper and kinling and push the doors to.

Not ideal opening a window on a cold day but its only a couple of minutes.

When my chimney was swept the sweep told me the flue should be taller as it is well below the ridge line

[spudulike]

We have had similar problems, usually on the first burn of the year or after the fire hasn't been alight for a couple of days or more and there isn't much wind.

 

Generally the culprits are a cold flue, blocked flue or wind turbulence over the pot.

 

We fitted some bloody expensive cowl called a "WindKat" which solved most of our issues as it increases the draw on the chimney and evens it out on windier days.

 

We noticed debris gathering on top of the baffle plate so we pop it out weekly to ensure this is clear.

 

The temperature thing - you can use rolled up newspaper or firelighters but you can still seriously get a bad blowback of smoke. A neighbour swears a nightlight lit an hour before the fire is lit works for him! If you have serious issues and don't mind a little expenditure, you can get draught fans that fit in the chimney and you just turn it on to create an up draught to make sure the draw on the chimney is good until warm.

 

I think you really need to find out which one of the above you have and go from there. If the fire does it on windy days and when the fire is going, fit a cowl, if it is when the fire is being lit on still cold days - experiment with warming the flue and possibly a better cowl!

 

My brother had big issues and had to raise his chimney pot a couple of feet more! Seems fine now.

[aurelius wood]

All

Thanks for the feedback

I swept the flue last month and it was installed way above the ridge so I think I can rule this out. The cap is worth considering, mine is fairly standard affair similar to the pic

I tend to agree with Ballibeg as it does seem to occur on still, chilly nights and the downward motion of the cold air is pushing the smoke back out.

I think my next attack will be trying to get the air heading the right way by lighting 1 or 2 non-natural firelighters (because they do burn more aggressively than the natural ones) before the newspaper/kindling goes in.

I'll try a few methods and keep you posted with the results.

[dirtybiker]

Just google a 'down draft illiminator cowl' come in various guises, some more expensive than others. The clay ones are only £50ish but get the right one for a solid fuel appliance. Your problem will be solved.

[Alycidon]

I use a cheap blow lamp, the type powered by those £1.5 camping gaz canisters, to gently warm the flue from the inside of the woodburner before lighting the kindling to avoid this.

 

Thats the way to go providing the flue is clean. Check for downdrafts, these occur when wind blows over the top of a taller building or trees or over the top of a hill. If you have downdrafts an anti down draft cowl on top of the pot should help.

 

A

[spudulike]

[ATTACH]191510[/ATTACH]All

Thanks for the feedback

I swept the flue last month and it was installed way above the ridge so I think I can rule this out. The cap is worth considering, mine is fairly standard affair similar to the pic

I tend to agree with Ballibeg as it does seem to occur on still, chilly nights and the downward motion of the cold air is pushing the smoke back out.

I think my next attack will be trying to get the air heading the right way by lighting 1 or 2 non-natural firelighters (because they do burn more aggressively than the natural ones) before the newspaper/kindling goes in.

I'll try a few methods and keep you posted with the results.

 

I have tried firelighters and they can leave heavy black soots all over the place and fill the room with parafiny acrid smoke. Newspaper wasn't that great either.

 

I have never used the night light candle idea but at least they won't stink the house out - stick a couple in and it may do the job!

 

This is the cowl we used - Enjoy cosy smoke-free evenings round your stove this winter! – Windkat Chimney Cowls bloody expensive, the neighbour says it looks like a Dalek but it does a good job with consistent burning even in heavy winds and no smoking now....bloody Germans:lol:

[se7enthdevil]

just get it hot real quick and let it burn for 10 minutes, if that hasn't got the draw going then you have a problem...

 

we have a small capacity box of only about 1 cubic foot but i stuff it full of paper cardboard easily lightable timbers (if i've no kindling) and a block of proper wood, i leave it 5-10 minutes till its embers and coals then fill it with logs.