by blogediter | Jan 23, 2019 | Chimney Plugs
Q: Jason, I have a wood buring fireplace and I installed glass doors from Home Depot. Can I close the doors while a fire is burning? – TS
A: TS, You will definitely lose less heat from your home if you burn with them closed. Granted you will be loosing out on some of that nice radiant heat that the fire is kicking out, but it is better to forfeit that than to give your fireplace open throttle to suck the heat out of your home.
I burn with my fireplace doors closed every time I use the fireplace. However, I do not use my fireplace much since it is such a losing battle to heat my home when I use it. When I do use it…it is nice and toasty warm up next to the fire and the rest of the house gets frigid cold because of the chimney air draw. I have resigned myself to using it in the fall and just plugging it with a Chimney Balloon for the other 3 seasons.- Jason
by blogediter | Jan 2, 2019 | Chimney Plugs
Fall & Winter
Q: Do I close the chimney damper after installing the Chimney Balloon? – SR
A: You can have the damper closed if you have the Chimney Balloon installed up in the chimney far enough to close the damper and clear the damper hardware. But doing this is kind of like making sure to close your screen door when your heavy storm door is already closed. The screen door (damper) is not holding much back, the storm door (Chimney Balloon) is doing the bulk of the work.
There are a few things to keep in mind though if you do decide to close the damper.
1) When you inflate the Chimney Balloon make sure to install it as high above the damper as you can comfortably reach after it is snugly in place remove the long clear inflation tube from the valve handle and store the inflation tube.
2) If you try to force the damper closed and the Chimney Balloon is not high enough, it may put upward pressure on the valve section that is sealed to the Chimney Balloon portion. That is a little tough on your Chimney Balloon since it puts constant undue pressure on the valve and balloon seal.
3) The other issue is if you close your damper you may forget you installed the Chimney Balloon and just open the damper and start a fire. So make sure you put the red reminder card that is included with your Chimney Balloon in a very visible place, like on the burning grate or by the gas spigot lever.
I leave my damper open and leave the inflation tube attached so it dangles just above my head when I open the glass doors to the fireplace. With this solution, I still have no draft problem since the Chimney Balloon seals the flue tighter than my metal flapper damper ever did. – SR
by blogediter | Jun 13, 2018 | Chimney Plugs
Beth yellow fireplace
Q: Jason, I’m trying to measure my fireplace for a Chimney Balloon, but what part of the flue do I measure? When I open the glass doors on the front of the hearth I look up and see the damper. When that damper is open (it opens downward) I see more of an open amount (Seems like the width of the fireplace) and then it slowly decreases in size to the main tunnel way up to the damper on the top of the chimney. This picture is taken just above the fireplace damper.
This main tunnel is approx 6 -9 inches by 12-15 inches. Did I measure correctly?
A: The expanded location (smoke chamber) just above the damper is the more convenient location for your Chimney Balloon to be installed, but that will probubly require a larger Chimney Balloon. You are looking for an area in your Chimney that is close enough to touch with your hand and has roughly parallel walls. Since the tapering starts after the damper opening the spot right above the damper is a perfect spot for the Chimney Balloon. Both gravety and the firepalce flues taper will hold the balloon down close to the damper and help it seal well. Here is a link to the Chimney Balloon sizing page that will help you see the best way to measure your flue. http://www.chimneyballoon.us/Chimneyballoonsizing.html
If odor is the main issue I usually suggest that the Chimney Balloon be installed as low in the chimney as possible to seal off more of the odorous chimney surfaces. – Jason
