frozen chimney

[kversch]

When outside this morning to find some icicles hanging off the chimney cap! I've never seen that befor.

Should I be worried that my chimney is getting too cool and potential creosote build up? Were due for a warm up in the next week so I plan to check things out. I've been burning pretty much nonstop since mid October.

 

[Tar12]

A few icicles is not a problem...had a few myself....I only see them after a overnight burn first thing in the morning... in this unusually cold weather we have been having here....nothing a hot fire didn't care of in short order.We are warming up this upcoming week as well..I will be checking and cleaning my system as well.

 

[Doug Morford]

Wood combustion puts off a lot of water. It's normal to get ice buildup in cold weather. It will melt off when the temps go back up, and if it starts to block your outlet just turn up the stove to melt if off.

 

[Sawset]

I haven't had a cap frozen with water vapor, but I have had it plug from creosote - just the cap - because of consistant cold like we are having. The situation here is one where I can get at it from the inside. A brush will do a poor job on clearing the cap. A sooteater possibly would. I improvise by drilling a piece of piano wire crossways on one end of a brush pole, running that up to the cap and using that to dislodge most of it. Happens so seldom, haven't had a need to improve on that. Some would say remove the cap screen to prevent it all in the first place.

 

[yooper08]

Can't say I've noticed icicles before on mine, but that doesn't mean anything. Could also be cap design or even wind playing a factor. Probably a good idea to check things out in the next few days as the thaw comes just to make sure.

This is me just thinking out loud, not saying this is fact. At the end of the burn cycle when things are starting to cool down, there's very little water, if any, left to go up the stack. Point here is that the vast majority of the water is expelled earlier in the burn, so the ice isn't forming at the very tail end, but earlier.

 

[Tar12]

a

Can't say I've noticed icicles before on mine, but that doesn't mean anything. Could also be cap design or even wind playing a factor. Probably a good idea to check things out in the next few days as the thaw comes just to make sure.

This is me just thinking out loud, not saying this is fact. At the end of the burn cycle when things are starting to cool down, there's very little water, if any, left to go up the stack. Point here is that the vast majority of the water is expelled earlier in the burn, so the ice isn't forming at the very tail end, but earlier.

You have a point there...I just noticed it in the morning...like the back to back mornings with -30 wind chills

 

[peakbagger]

Water just goes along with the ride in a typical fire. It normally is bound up in the wood as liquid and before it leaves the stack its vapor. If your wood is 15% moisture content, then 15% of the wood weight you haul in is water that has to go up the stack and out the chimney. In cold conditions surfaces on your chimney can get cold enough that the water vapor will condense back from steam to liquid and then it will run down and freeze.

 

[CincyBurner]

When outside this morning to find some icicles hanging off the chimney cap! I've never seen that befor.

Today I noticed 10" - 12" stalagmites on my concrete chimney concrete cap below wood stove chimney cap. This am southeast Ohio woke up to -2 .

 

[CincyBurner]

southeast Ohio

meant southwest OH

 

[firefighterjake]

Pretty normal when the temps are sub zero or in the single digits . . . me . . . I'm eager awaiting a warm up. High 20s and low 30s would be really great . . .

 

[peakbagger]

Yup, time to get the roof rake out.