Should the fireplace flue be open or closed?
You should keep the fireplace flue closed when you aren’t using it. This will prevent hot or cold air from escaping up the chimney. However, you should make sure that it is completely open before starting the fire and whenever you are using the fireplace. If you light a fire and it is closed, the smoke will enter your house.
Should you open the flue on a gas fireplace?
We’ve determined that the flue on a gas fireplace should stay open whenever the fireplace is in use or when the pilot light is on. If the flue were to be closed in either situation, there are severe safety concerns that could arise – including a greater risk of carbon monoxide poisoning or a structure fire caused by a buildup of toxins produced by the natural gas or propane burners.
How to close up an unused fireplace?
The Best Ways to Close up a Chimney
- Time Period. Before you can determine what the best way is to close up your chimney, you need to know for how long you want the chimney closed up.
- Keeping Rain and Animals out. ...
- Insulating the Bottom of the Chimney. ...
- Sealing the Clean-out. ...
Which way opens the flue?
Open, Sesame. The method of opening and closing the flue depends on the type of fireplace and how it was constructed and installed in the room. Modern fireplaces often have a handle installed above or inside the opening. You turn the handle to a vertical position to open the flue damper and back to a horizontal position to close it.
Should gas fireplace flue be open or closed?
The damper should be kept closed when there is no fire or coals burning. Warm air from your home will not be lost up the chimney when the fireplace is not being used. Fully open the damper before your start a fire and keep it fully open until all embers and coals have burned out.May 10, 2020
What happens if fireplace flue is closed?
A closed throat damper will cause smoke to fill your house immediately when you start a fire. If you have a chimney with a closed top-mount damper It might take a few minutes for smoke to start filling the house, but you will eventually notice that there isn't enough airflow.May 29, 2020
Can you partially close the flue on a gas fireplace?
No. The damper must be in the fully open position when using a wood-burning fireplace. Partially closing the flue (chimney) damper can cause smoke to spill into the room when burning wood, or cause carbon monoxide (CO) to come into the room when using gas logs.
Do you leave the vent open on a gas fireplace?
When in use, the fireplace vent should always be open. This prevents smoke from entering your home. If the vent is closed, it will block the chimney, causing smoke to invade your living space. Additionally, you should leave the vent open when using a gas fireplace as well.Feb 5, 2022
Should you close the fireplace flue?
You should close the damper on your fireplace once the fire and embers have all burned out. This prevents warm air in your house from escaping out the chimney. You should open the damper before lighting a fire and close it once the fire is done burning.
Should I close the flue?
A fireplace damper should always be kept open while the fire is burning. Furthermore, keep the damper open until all the embers are done burning. Smoke and dangerous carbon monoxide can enter the house. Once the ember bed is completely out, close the damper.Dec 26, 2019
What happens if you don't open the flue on a gas fireplace?
Our research shows that the flue on a gas fireplace should remain open during use or when the pilot light is lit. If the flue is closed in either instance, you risk a greater chance of carbon monoxide poisoning or a spark induced structure fire due to a buildup of toxins emitted by propane or natural gas burners.Sep 30, 2020
Can you run a gas fireplace with the damper closed?
somewhat like the way a gas range in a kitchen works. Since there is little or no exhaust, they can be burned with the damper closed. The beauty of this type of system is that 99.9% of the heat produced by the gas logs goes into the room, so they produce substantially more heat than their vented counter-parts.Mar 26, 2013
Should you leave the flue open?
The smoke from burning wood contains carbon monoxide, so in order to prevent this toxic byproduct from entering your home, it is important to leave the flue open overnight. This enables a draft to carry the compound out into the atmosphere, instead of sinking down the chimney and saturating the room.
Can you close the flue with pilot light on?
If you have installed gas logs in your fireplace, the damper should never be closed. If you have a pilot light constantly burning under your gas logs, shutting the damper puts you, your family and your pets at severe risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.Jul 13, 2016
Does a gas fire need a flue?
A regular gas stove does need a chimney or flue. As gas doesn't produce any heavy smoke, as a wood burning stove would, they don't require you to have a Class 1 brick chimney – though they usually can be installed into one of these without any issues.Dec 1, 2020
How do you close a gas fireplace?
How to Close the Chimney FlueTurn off the gas to the fireplace or wait for wood to burn out. ... Put on work gloves to keep your hands free of soot. ... Push the lever up slightly to disengage it from its support tab and then pull it away from the tab horizontally as the damper lowers into a closed position.
Why do you need to vent a gas log fireplace?
Because gas-log fires produce copious amounts of carbon monoxide, they have to vent outside in a fail-safe manner. That's why there is, or should be, a keep-open device attached to the damper in gas-log fireplaces. Do not close a fireplace damper until the fire is completely out.
How to tell if a chimney is closed?
Perform a visual check. Using a flashlight, poke your head inside the fireplace to look up into the chimney. If you have a throat damper, you can tell if it is closed if you see a barrier above your head. If you can see up into the flue, the damper is open.
How long after a fire should I keep the fireplace damper open?
Also, how long after a fire can I close the flue? A fireplace damper should always be kept open while the fire is burning. Furthermore, keep the damper open until all the embers are done burning.
Can you close the flue when you shut off the fireplace?
You can close the flue when you shut it off, to keep the warm house air from going up the chimney, or if you have glass doors just leave the flue open all the time and close the doors when off. Click to see full answer. Hereof, can you close the damper on a gas fireplace?
Can you burn a gas fireplace with the flue closed?
Can you burn gas fireplace with flue closed? It sounds like you have a wood-burning fireplace that was converted to gas. You can close the flue when you shut it off, to keep the warm house air from going up the chimney, or if you have glass doors just leave the flue open all the time and close the doors when off.
Where is the vent on a gas fireplace?
A vent is located at the top of the gas fireplace that allows waste air to leave the room into the chimney. As this gas fireplace was already installed in the house when it was bought, we’re currently unsure as to whether there’s a flue liner installed within this chimney.
What does it mean when a gas fireplace is vented?
If a gas fireplace is vented it means that waste air produced by the fireplace is allowed to leave a home. If a gas fireplace is ventless then there’s no external form of ventilation and all waste air from a ventless gas fireplace is released back into a home.
What is a natural vent fireplace?
Natural vent gas fireplaces, also known as B-vent, traditionally sit within masonry fireplaces and utilize the associated chimney for removing waste air from a home. A natural vent gas fireplace will: Use air within a home to feed the combustion inside the gas fireplace. Exhaust waste air indirectly out of a home using a natural draft movement ...
What is the gas used in a ventless fireplace?
Ventless gas fireplaces use the oxygen within the air of a home to feed the fire and the by-products consist mainly of Carbon Dioxide and water vapor. Ventless gas fireplaces release waste air back into the air within a home and so no form of flue to the vent waste air outside is typically required.
Where is the vent for a direct vent fireplace?
The air intake vent for a direct vent gas fireplace typically extends horizontally out the back of the fireplace and through an external wall of a home to the outside. This allows a direct vent gas fireplace to take air directly from outside. The exhaust vent for a direct vent gas fireplace allows waste air from the combustion chamber ...
Do vents need a flue?
Therefore, direct vent gas fireplaces need a flue that either extends horizontally out through an external wall of a home or vertically up through the roof. The other main type of vented gas fireplace is natural vent gas fireplaces. Natural vent gas fireplaces, also known as B-vent, traditionally sit within masonry fireplaces and utilize ...
Do you need an exhaust vent for a gas fireplace?
Although direct vent gas fireplaces require both intake and exhaust vents to the outside of a home, they are popular options for gas fireplaces because the air associated with the use of a direct vent gas fireplace is kept completely separate and sealed off from the air within a home. This can mean that direct vent gas fireplaces can produce fewer ...
How often do you use your fireplace? If the answer is never, you may want to seal it off. Here are the best temporary and permanent options
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Why Close Off a Fireplace?
There’s no denying the ambiance of a wood-burning fireplace. The rosy glow, crackling sounds and gentle heat create an unmistakably cozy space on chilly fall evenings. But owning a fireplace is a lot of work — too much for many people. If you hardly use your fireplace, the upkeep might be more than it’s worth.
Close Off Fireplaces with a Throat Damper
The first, and perhaps easiest, way to close off a fireplace is with the damper. “If you have a bottom/standard masonry damper you can close it and seal it closed with silicone to stop the airflow,” says Blaken. The damper itself goes a long way toward closing off the fireplace, which is why every wood-burning fireplace needs one.
Close Off Fireplaces with a Chimney Cap Damper
A chimney cap damper seals a fireplace from the top. This style of damper is very secure; some even come with a rubber seal. “If you have a top closing cap damper, they are more efficient than bottom closing dampers,” explains Blaken. “Those would be the easiest, most temporary solutions.”
Maintain the Look with Fireplace Doors
You can also purchase doors for the fireplace opening. These seal the fireplace while adding to your home décor. Doors can be used in addition to the dampers mentioned above to “maintain the look of the fireplace without the function,” explains Blaken.
Seal the Fireplace Opening
There are more permanent options available to close off a fireplace, but they’re also more time consuming. “You can also cover/seal the fireplace opening with brick or drywall if you want to eliminate the fireplace altogether,” says Blaken. You could build a drywall fireplace cover or hire a pro to do it for you.
Fireplace Inserts
A gas fireplace insert is an excellent option for people who are tired of the wood-burning energy vampire. You might also use a gas fireplace more often, since you won’t have to keep firewood on hand and manually build a fire every time the mood strikes. They can be costly and usually require professional installation.
Can you burn natural gas and turn it into carbon monoxide?
Absolutely. Because you’re burning – you know, you’re burning natural gas; that’s going to convert to carbon monoxide. You’ve got to make sure that vents (ph) up the house; it’s not slightly open, it’s all the way open.
Is an unvented gas fireplace a manufactured unit?
TOM: Yeah, an unvented gas fireplace is a manufactured unit – you know, a steel unit – that’s made under very careful controls; and, frankly, even though it is designed to be unvented, we don’t like them. LESLIE: Mm-hmm. They really should always be vented. TOM: We would much prefer that they always be vented.
