May 2015 - Clean Sweeps of Michigan

Close Your Fireplace and Chimney for the Season

Close Your Fireplace for the Summer - Ann Arbor, MI - Clean Sweeps of Michigan With summer just a few short weeks away, most families are done using their fireplaces until the fall. Because of this, now is the perfect time to close up your chimney and fireplace for the season!

Rather than simply no longer using your fireplace, there are four easy steps to make sure that when you stop using your fireplace for the season it will be ready for use again in the spring.

1. Clean the fireplace

The first – and most obvious – step to closing your fireplace for the season is cleaning it. Homeowners can do part of the chimney cleaning themselves by removing any leftover ash or soot from the firebox. Avoid using a vacuum when cleaning the firebox as it may cause fine particulate ash to go airborne, coating interior furnishings and leaving your home dirties instead of cleaner! Even vacuums with HEPA filters often cannot adequately contain the mess created when vacuuming ash.

In addition to removing any fire remnants in the firebox, a thorough chimney sweeping should be performed. A professional chimney sweep can access and clean even the most hard to reach areas of your fireplace, ensuring that your chimney will be clean and ready for fires in the fall.

2. Have the chimney inspected

In addition to a chimney sweeping, an annual chimney inspection is also recommended in the spring. A chimney inspection is an important part of regular chimney maintenance and is an excellent way to make sure your chimney has not been damaged or deteriorated over the past year. In addition, chimney inspections are good preventative maintenance; small problems or defects can be easily repaired before your chimney system is damaged.

3. Tightly close the damper

While the damper should be closed every time the fireplace is not in use, this is especially important to do in the spring before closing the fireplace and chimney for the season. Left open, the damper can cause significant energy loss as cooled air from inside your home slowly leaks out, letting warm air from outside in to replace it. For additional energy savings, glass doors can be installed as an additional measure to seal cool air in and warm air out.

Gas fireplace owners do not need to worry about closing their dampers – the damper of a gas fireplace should always remain open, regardless of whether or not the fireplace is in use.

4. Turn off the pilot light

If you have a gas fireplace that you are not planning on using for a long period of time, turning off the pilot light is one way to help save energy. Because it stays lit the entire time the unit is connected, the pilot light continually uses energy to burn, costing you money. Turning off the pilot light is safe as long as you know you will not be using your fireplace while it is off.

By taking the time to close your fireplace and chimney for the season, you can relax and enjoy your summer without fall chimney maintenance looming over your head. Call Clean Sweeps of Michigan today to schedule an appointment to help close your fireplace and chimney system for the season!

Chimney Terminology: Chimney or Flue or Vent?

Chimney Flue or Vent - Ann Arbor, MI - Clean Sweeps of MI Despite its simple appearance, your chimney is much more complicated than it might seem. While chimneys may decorate your roofline, they serve a much more important purpose than for mere aesthetics.

Because there are a variety of different kinds of chimneys, many homeowners do not know the correct chimney terminology to use when describing their fireplace system. Below is a discussion of three of the most commonly confused fireplace terms: chimney, flue, and vent.

Chimney

The chimney is the vertical stack that extends from the top of your roofline, allowing smoke, gas, or other products of combustion to exit your home. A chimney may pass through other parts of the house before exiting your home; this is especially true in homes where the chimney is not on an exterior wall or is on the first floor.

Chimneys are typically constructed of bricks, mortar, or other masonry or are factory built and made of stainless steel. Some factory built chimneys are covered with a decorative chimney chase or siding or other roofing materials to match the rest of the house.

In a discussion of the parts of your fireplace system, the chimney tends to be the exterior portion that is exposed to the elements.

Flue

The term flue refers to the passage by which smoke, gas, or products of combustion are moved to the outdoors. Ducts, pipes, vents, and even chimneys can all be considered types of flues. The purpose of the flue is to protect the rest of the home from the heat of the byproducts of combustion caused by a fire.

Most homes with modern fireplaces have a lined flue. Many flues are lined with tiles, although they may need to be relined over time due to damage or decay. Chimneys with damaged flue liners are often repaired with cast in place or stainless steel liners to ensure the flue has no gaps or holes through with hot air, gas, embers, or sparks could escape.

Vent

Vents are similar to fireplaces and flues in that they may pass through other parts of the house and they do need temperature protection to prevent a transfer of heat from the vent to the surrounding building materials. However, vents are not designed to handle the high heat produced by wood burning fires. Because of this, vents are most commonly used with gas fireplaces.

Vents may exit vertically through the roof, but may also exit horizontally through a wall. Like chimneys and flues, vents allow the byproducts of combustion to exit the home while simultaneously drawing in outside air to fuel the fire. By drawing in air from the outside into a closed combustion system, fireplaces with vents are able to operate much more efficiently than their open hearth counterparts.

If you’re unsure as to whether your fireplace system has a chimney, flue, or vent, contact Clean Sweeps of Michigan today. Our highly trained staff can evaluate the health of your fireplace system while making sure you know the correct terminology to use for the future.

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Close Your Fireplace and Chimney for the Season

Chimney Terminology: Chimney or Flue or Vent?

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