|
A chimney damper is a small device that sits in your chimney and can control the flow of air into the chimney. You can have the chimney damper open, closed, or partially open. Usually, you will close the chimney damper in the summer when the fireplace is not in use. You may also close it between fires in the winter to keep the warmth in when the fire is not on. The other advantage of a chimney damper is that not only does it keep the cold air out, but it also keeps out animals, weather and leaves.
In some older houses or houses in forested areas, a chimney damper is a major advantage. There are many stories of people who have found out that the old house they just bought does not have a damper because a number of interesting animals are coming in the chimney. However, this is a problem with a simple solution as you can buy chimney dampers quite cheaply and install them very simply into your chimney. As well as a chimney damper, there can also be dampers that control other pipes in the house such as air conditioning pipes and dehumidifier ducts. It is not always easy to get access to your chimney damper. Wood stoves and similar fireplaces will usually have a handle somewhere on the stove that you can use to open and close the chimney. However, a regular chimney in a fireplace will often not have this handle. In order to open and close a chimney damper in this case, it may be necessary to reach your hand up the chimney and find it, or even use a broom handle to reach it. In the past there has been a practice of partially closing a chimney damper to reduce the supply of air to a fire. This causes the fire to burn more slowly and less hotly, reducing heat and fuel consumption. However, this practice should no longer be used in most cases. Restricting the air supply to a fire causes a lot more smoke to be created then in a well aired fire. A chimney damper that is partially closed can do a lot of harm to air quality, and can also be dangerous to your health. Even small amounts of smoke contain cancer causing pollutants and can be particularly harmful to children, the elderly and those with asthma. If you forget to open your chimney damper completely, then you can cause serious damage. The smoke from the fire will have no outlet and can cause serious injury and even death. It will also cause thousands of dollars in smoke damage. The lack of an outlet can also cause the fire to get out of control and destroy the building. Therefore, it may not be the best idea to close your chimney damper too often during the winter, and always make sure you open it each fall before you start your first fire of the season.
|
