L.C. Home Page Newsletter Contents E-mail Dave Chimney Tips Chimneys pose a potential danger. Most of them are concealed or inaccessible, yet they play a critical role in the overall safety of a wood-burning system. Chimneys have two functions. They create a draft to bring air to the fire, and they carry hot gases safely away. Only units listed by a national testing service should be used.
Most people use an existing chimney for their wood-burning system.
Because you cannot be sure of an old chimney's safety, an expert, such as a qualified mason or chimney sweep, should inspect it before it is used. There are also things that you can check personally. Tile liners, not present in all older chimneys, increase overall safety. If there are cracks in the flue tiles, hot gasses and creosote can escape the flue prematurely and start a fire. If you build a smokey fire and cover the flue and smoke escapes through any cracks or holes, they must be repaired before the chimney is used.