Chimney Smoke Chamber Diagram

The diagram shows the layout of a fireplace and chimney commonly found in a home but as all houses are built differently the layout and design of your fireplace may differ from the one shown above.

Chimney smoke chamber diagram.

The smoke chamber is the sloping section of the fireplace above the damper and throat but below the chimney flue. The back of the smoke chamber is usually vertical. The smoke chamber is the area above the fireplace firebox where you build your fire just below the flue. It is at this point that a damper followed by a smoke shelf and a smoke chamber are provided to help direct the smoke and combustion gases out of the chimney to the outside as shown in figure 1.

For the safety and efficiency of your fireplace it is important that any gaps cracks or holes in the smoke chamber be sealed and the brick corbelling be made smooth. If you can t reach it this isn t a diy project. According to the national fire protection association nfpa defective smoke chambers are the third leading cause of chimney related house fires. Most chambers are 3 4 feet in height but can be shorter or taller and out of proportion.

If properly designed a smoke chamber is supposed to smoothly evacuate the smoke and products of combustion out of the fireplace to the flue and eventually out of the chimney to the outdoors. Smoke shelf is the area behind the damper that is nearly level. This ensures total perimeter support for the flue liner. Parts of a fireplace diagram.

Combustion chamber and smoke chamber fig. The purpose of the smoke chamber is to compress the byproducts of combustion into a smaller space the flue inside the chimney without causing. Fireplace smoke chamber smoke shelf and damper design the firebox and the chimney are connected by a slot like opening called the throat. Call our chimney sweeps in the gaithersburg md area for help.

The smoke chamber is located just above the. Since that area is hard to reach in some fireplaces check yours to see if you can reach into it and still have room to maneuver a brush. It is the bottom of the chimney. In a fireplace without a chimney cover the rain water will pool on the smoke shelf mix with the soot behind the damper and form an acidic slurry that can destroy the mortar joints.

5a optional smoke shelf configuration fig. Typically the sides and front of the smoke chamber slope. Dec 18 2015 wondering whats inside a chimney or what needs to be checked durning a chimney inspection. Keeping these joints in good repair with a high temperature refractory mortar will help ensure the fire is contained.

Below is a diagram of a typical fireplace and chimney.