Open fire - pipe going from inside house to outside?

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pudzer

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Hi!

My engineer has recommended putting a small 2-3" cast iron pipe coming from the outside of the house into the hearth of the open fireplace in the sittingroom. It seems to supply oxygen to the fire and also creates a small draft that will push the smoke (and the heat?!!) up the chimney rather than into the sittingroom.
It can be left open or closed off. Apparently they were used in older houses a lot.
Anyone know of such a device and/or where I could get one?

Thanks
Pudzer
 
I was thinking of installing 1 of them too. Basically the open fire uses a massive ammount of Oxygen, this oxygen is pulled from all the other rooms in the house. So, your central heating is working overtime to heat the new cold air being pulled in through the vents. You are also creating drafts through gaps in the doors and windows as the open fire pulls the required oxygen into the sittingroom. The pipe you mention allows cold air to be supplied to the fireplace from outside. I dont know where they can be bought.
 
If you Google on Baxi you might find stockists in your area.

We have this system in one of our fireplaces in our 50+ year old house in England.
 
Google on Baxi Fire will get you lots of info on the system, but after a quick look I couldn't get any data on stockists in Ireland. Maybe if you have more time and/or patience than I have you will find what you want.

Good luck

BillK
 
I require something that works in a similar fashion but it is required in an existing house.

I have tried this suction device on the top of the chimney, however it is not working

Any recommendations appreciated
 
Last edited:
Pope John 11 said:
...
I have tried this suction device on the top of the chimney, however it is not working...
Click to expand...
The suction device at the chimney "pot", which draws air from inside the house up the existing flue, is very different to the Baxi thingy, which draws cold air from outside into the fireplace.

Your existing device if it were to work, would potentially make draughts in the house worse. The Baxi Fire pipe feeds the fire with air without drawing air through doors and windows. I believe it can be retro-fitted, but I don't know of anyone who does the work.
 
Hi Pudzer,
certainly put one in for the reasons Froggie stated. I've put one into my new house which I'm currently building. What I used in the end was a piece of flexible aluminum air ducting and a right angled galvanised piece of guttering. The piece of guttering came up in the centre of the hearth with the flexi ducting going to the outside wall. I dont think you need to get some high heat resistant metal because even if this metal rots out you will still have a vent as it's set in concrete. That' my logic anyway
I'm going to have a wood stove in my fireplace. Are you going with an open fire?
Oldgold
 
Just phoned a really good local fireplace shop.

They knew exactly what I was talking about and suggested going to Chadwicks or the like.

They didn't exactly recommend this method however - they felt that the fire would draw oxygen from the room regardless of having the draught on or off. They also felt that the fire would 'eat' fuel.

I will check with Chadwicks tomorrow and will post if they have an opinion.

Thanks for all your help
 
My auld buck also recommended that we put this into the floor when we building the house. So I did, all it is is a piece of plastic piping (2''). As it is, each end is closed, but I would just have to break out the floor of the hearth and put a vent on the outside.
I don't think one would have to get a particular type or make. All it does is allow air to be drawn up into the floor.
Cast iron sounds like a better idea alright, but I doubt that my plastic pipe will combust while enclosed in concrete.
We live in a pretty windy part of the country, and my auld buck suggested it as he reckoned that depending on the prevailing wind, the fire place could smoke a lot (just like the house at home, and the AB wished he had done it).
I suppose that the logic behind this is that when the fire can't draw enough oxygen onto it while it burning, especially when there's plenty of fresh fuel, and the doors are closed (always had to have one open at home)that the smoke will sometimes come back into the room when there is a downdraft, but having the vent underneath allows the fire to draw air up through it anyway.
Can also be retro fitted I suppose, you'd just have to chase a channel out of the floor between the fireplace and the external wall, and put a pipe in. Could also put it above the floor if you had units or that between fireplace and external wall.
 
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