Our Company Blog

Chimney Physics 101

When you own a home with a masonry chimney and fireplace, it is a good idea to understand how it works so that when problems arise, you may have an easier time troubleshooting what is wrong. One of the most common chimney issues has to do with smoke blowing back into your home. It may surprise you to learn that the air in your home is in constant motion. According to the Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA), it can help you to think of your house as a system, and several different things in this system, including your fireplace, can affect the airflow.

For over 25 years, Atlas Chimney has provided superior professional chimney maintenance, repair, and installation services to the Austin area. We love teaching our customers about the physics that help chimneys work efficiently. We would like to tell you more about how your chimney works and what you should know about it.

How can I make the draft work best in my chimney?

In order to produce enough draft to pull the exhaust gases out of your chimney, you need the right amount of heat from the fireplace. The hot gases produced by fire is more boyant that cold air, causing it to rise out the chimney. This is known as the stack effect. The hotter the fire burns, the stronger your chimney draft will be. This difference in air pressure pushes out the exhaust gases as it pulls combustion air into your fireplace. Another factor that affects how much draft you have is the height of the chimney. Taller chimneys will have stronger drafts.

What are the most commonly experienced chimney draft problems?

At Atlas Chimney, we often get calls from our customers asking for help with their smoky fireplaces and chimneys. Often these issues are due to poor drafting. A weak chimney draft can be caused by flue blockages, stuck dampers, construction errors, damage to the structure, and dirty chimney caps. Our CSIA-certified chimney professionals have been trained on exactly where to look to diagnose draft problems. After we inspect your chimney, we will recommend the action that is needed to correct the draft and flow.

Understanding the physics of your chimney can help you to enjoy warmer and safer fires this winter. If you have any chimney draft issues, contact us today at Atlas Chimney to schedule an appointment for our professional chimney inspection services.

Fire Hazards

Spring brings with it the promise of rebirth and renewal. Students are looking forward to summer activities away from the routine of the school day, families plan vacations, and parents think about doing a deep down spring cleaning before these activities take place. It feels good to clean out closets and attics, get rid of items you haven’t used in years, rake the yard, open the windows and let the fresh air blow through. But there are some areas that it’s best to let the professionals clean. Two of those places are your fireplace and chimney system, and your dryer vents. The reason this is so important is that both of these places hold the potential for a home-threatening fire to break out.

Creosote Buildup

A major cause of chimney fires is creosote. As you burn wood in your fireplace, the moisture that is trapped in the wood is released, along with a wide variety of chemicals. As this travels up your chimney, it condenses and forms a layer of flammable material called creosote. All it takes is one little spark and you could have a full-fledged chimney fire.

When you think of a chimney fire, most often the thought that comes to mind is a full-fledged, roaring fire, with smoke and flames billowing out of the chimney. Sometimes this is the case. More often, however, the fire that occurs is small, often going completely unnoticed by the homeowner. This is because there isn’t usually enough airflow in your chimney to feed this type of fire. Because of this, most often a fire will burn itself out before you know it is happening. This is equally dangerous, because your chimney may have sustained damage and you don’t know to have it fixed. If the mortar is damaged, the gases that are produced through fire burning may be leaking back into your home, causing health issues for you, your family, and your pets.

Full Dryer Vents

Another common place for a house fire to begin is in your dryer vent. It’s common knowledge that you should clean out your dryer’s lint screen after every load or two of clothes that you dry, but this isn’t enough to keep your home safe from a dryer vent fire. Some of the lint that pulls off of your clothes gets through that lint screen no matter how often you clean it, and as it blows through the dryer vent, it can get caught along the sides, attracting even more lint with each load you dry. This lint buildup is also highly flammable, and a stray spark from your dryer could cause a devastating house fire.

Call Atlas Chimney

At Atlas Chimney, we have the qualified professionals and the tools to look deep into your chimney to discover any and all creosote that has built up and to remove this hazardous material. Not only are we chimney experts, but we are also dryer vent experts, too! Although it may seem like a simple job, we have the proper equipment to get the job done thoroughly and with less mess. Give us a call and let us take care of all your chimney and dryer vent cleaning needs!