by blogediter | Apr 1, 2019 | Chimney Plugs, Press
I love the weekly home improvement column by Jim and Morris Carey (The Carey Brothers). They are nationally-recognized experts on home building and renovation and syndicated columnist as well. Personally, I read their articles every Sunday in the Janesville Gazette. In Feb 2006 the Chimney Pillow was honored to be mentioned by them on their tip of the day.
Here is a snippet of their article:
“…So, as the fireplace gets used, it can warp and rust to the point where it won’t close tightly. If this is the case with your fireplace, look into a “chimney pillow.” This pillow is like a beach ball or an air mattress.
Place the chimney pillow into the fireplace flue just above the damper.
Inflate it by using a hand pump, or blow it up by mouth.
Close the tap on the fill hose.
The chimney pillow will keep hot air in and freezing cold air out. A label or another reminder should be placed on the hearth or in the firebox telling you to remove it before starting a fire. Deflation takes about a minute, and no tools are required….”
Read the rest of the article by clicking here.
Above article in part, the image in part and related content are the property of On The House Syndication Inc. All Copyright belongs to On the House Syndication.
by blogediter | Dec 7, 2018 | Chimney Plugs
Chimney Balloon too big
Q: Jason – According to the attached picture do you think I bought a Chimney Pillow that is too big? – GJ
A: GJ, You absolutely bought a Chimney Balloon that was too big. I would say it is at least 6″ too big in 2 dimensions by the look of it. It is hard to tell the dimensions from a picture like this, but I am willing to bet that is a 9″x9″ flue passage that you stuffed a 15×15 Chimney Ballon into. You would be much better served by using a 9×9 Chimney Balloon for this particular spot. But you did do the right thing by purchasing an HEK extender to install your Chimney Balloon so high in the flue. Without the extender, you would have had a terrible time getting the Chimney Balloon that high.
Actually, you may want to consider using a larger Chimney Balloon closer down to where your damper was. I see you had your damper cut off when you had the lock top damper installed. I can tell you have a locktop Lymance chimney top damper by the cable that runs along the side of your flue. The Chimney Balloon will inflate around the cable just fine, but be sure to wrap some tape around the cable where it will come in contact with the Chimney Balloon. Cables like this often have rough frayed edges that will poke into the Chimney Balloon when you inflate it into place.
Note: This customer ended up with a 36×15 Chimney Balloon that was easier to install lower by the flue opening. Read more on this at this link on How to install a Chimney Balloon where there is a locktop damper cable in the flue.
by blogediter | Nov 23, 2018 | Save Energy
Chimney Pillow
Q: Jason, I saw something mentioned about a Chimney Pillow on a newsletter I get from Jim Dulley on home energy savings. I bought one and am very pleased with how it has plugged the flue despite my rusty damper. – TW
A: Jim Dulley of www.dulley.com is a nationally renown expert on home energy usage and an expert on all things “Green”. Jim has written on the Chimney Pillow in a couple of different bulletins. See Below for excerpt from his articles:
“Even though it seems like the damper is closed completely, many dampers do not fit tightly or seal well. You can stuff some old rags up around the damper to help seal it off. The best sealing method is an inflatable chimney pillow. You just place it up into the chimney and blow it up with air. It both seals and insulates. Check at your hardware or home center store.” Link to the article at : http://www.dulley.com/tip/t1119.shtml “The most heated room air is lost up chimneys when there is no fire burning because of a nonexistent or poor sealing chimney damper. To seal the chimney and provide insulation, I use an inflatable chimney pillow in my fireplace. It is clear plastic and you blow it up like a mini-air mattress.” Here is the Link: http://www.dulley.com/docs/f553.htm
Images and article excerpts are copyright property of www.dulley.com, All rights reserved. Copyright 2005
