Double sided fireplace question:
I am rebuilding a house on piers. The architect designed a divider between the kitchen/dining area and the living room to consist of a two-sided fireplace and an entertainment center. Ceilings in all rooms are of the same height. The fireplace installer tells me that 90% of all two-sided wood burning fireplaces blow smoke into the house. I am planning to have a 4″ fresh air supply pipe feeding the fireplace. Any other suggestions on how to avoid smoke coming into the living area when for example the central heat system comes on or when exterior doors are opened/closed?
Replies
Flue size relates to the open area on the face of the fireplace. Double the open area and the flue can get out of control.
Best bet, and often the most effective, is to put a glass partition over one face of the fp.
One side closed with glass solely for viewing, the other side with access for feeding the fire, etc.
The other thing to do is to add a power draft to the top of the chimney.
You don't say whether this is a precast, Metal fab, or CMU.
Theoreticly, any manufacturer who sells prefab or metalfabs will have desined it with a flue sized large enough to handle the doubled opennning. You should ask specifically and compare top their other units. If they sell the same size unit with a single openning and with the same size pipe, they didn't do their homework and it wioll smoke.
Another thing that increases draft is the height of the chimney, up to a point. But again, that is theoretical. Some of this depends on whether masonry ( warm chimneys flow better) or metal ( cold chimney means huge volumn of air to move.)
Dry wod and hot fires helps too.
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Excellence is its own reward!
Edited 11/25/2003 6:17:52 PM ET by piffin