IMPROVED MEANS OR APPARATUS FOR REGULATING THE DRAUGHT IN STOVES OR FIRE-PLACES
Year: 1884

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
I, CHARLES DENTON ABEL of No 28 Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane,
in the county of Middlesex, Consulting Engineer and Patent Agent do heroby
declare the nature of my said invention for "IMPROVED MEANS OR APPARATUS FOR
REGULATING THE DRAUGHT IN STOVES OR FIRE-PLACES" to be as follows:-
This invention relates to improved means for regulating the draught in stoves or
enclosed fire places whereby the variations in the difference of pressure between
that of the outer atmosphere and that existing in the stove or chimney flue are
caused to actuate a valve or equivalent appliance in such manner as to either more
or less restrict the area of the chimney flue so as to lessen or increase the draught,
or to increase or decrease the air supply to the fire or to admit more or less cold
air to the chimney or to effect any two or more of these operations in combination.
Various arrangements may be employed for carrying out this method of regulation;
according to one arrangement a pivotted flap contained within a casing is caused
by a counterweight to lie against an opening communicating with the atmosphere,
while the casing on the opposite side of the flap has an opening communicating
with the chimney flue.
The flap being connected by a rod to the arm of a throttle valve in the flue, any
movement of the flap due to a variation in the difference of pressures on each side
thereof will be communicated to the throttle valve so as to more or less open or
close the flue. The casing may be formed with side channels, which are uncovered
by the flap when this has been moved a certain distance by an excess of pressure
of the atmosphere, thus allowing a quantity of cold atmospheric air to enter the
flue through the casing, and thus still further restrict the draught.
Instead of arranging the said casing with regulating flap and throttle valve in
connection with the chimney flue, they may be arranged in connection with the
fire-place, there being provided a chamber, communicating respectively with the
atmosphere, the fireplace, and the casing of the regulating flap, which also com-
municates with the interior of the stove, while the throttle valve is contained in
the first named chamber. Thus, on any increase of draught occurring, the Bap is
moved by the atmospheric pressure, so as to close the throttle valve and thus
diminish the supply of air to the fireplace.

page_text: According to another arrangement, the flap may form part of the side of the
chimney flue itself, so that when pressed inwards by the excess of atmospheric
pressure, it restricts the area of the flue, and if necessary also admits cold air into
the same.
Or there may be provided at the bottom of the chimney flue a chamber communi-
cating therewith, having one or more openings, provided with counterweighted flaps
or valves, which in opening under increased atmospheric pressure, admit a certain
quantity of air into the chimney, which, in mixing with the combustion gases from
the stove, both diminishes the draught by the increased bulk of gases introduced.
into the chimney and also effects the cooling of the gases, thereby still further
checking the combustion.
The said chamber at the bottom of the chimney Bue may be made to communicate
both with the exit pipe for the combustion gases from the stove and with the fire-
place of the stove; so that the-air required for the combustion is taken from such
chamber, into which the air enters through one or more openings; which-may. or.
may not be provided with the beforementioned regulating flaps or valves. Thus,
as both the air supply to the stove, and the discharge of combustion gases are
subject to the pressure existing in the said chamber the draught will be independent
of the height-of-tho-chimney and will only be regulated by the height of the
vertical pipe through which-the-combustion gases are discharged-into-the-said-
chamber.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
I, CHARLES DENTON ABEL, of N° 28 Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane
in the County of Middlesex, Consulting Engineer and Patent Agent, do hereby
declare the nature of my invention for
" 'IMPROVED MEANS OR APPARATUS FOR
REGULATING THE DRAUGHT IN STOVES OR FIRE-PLACES" and in what manner the
saine is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement :—
This invention relates to improved means for regulating the draught in stoves or
enclosed fire-places whereby the variations in the difference of pressure between
that of the outer atmosphere and that existing in the stove or chimney flue are
caused to actuate a valve or equivalent appliance in such manner as to either more
or less restrict the area of the chimney flue so as to lessen or increase the draught,
or to increase or decrease the air supply to the fire or to admit more or less cold
air to the chimney or to effect any two or more of these operations in combination.
The accompanying drawings shew various arrangements for carrying out the
above described modo of regulation. Figs. 1 and 2 shew respectively a vertical
section and elevation of one arrangement; Figs. 3, 4, 5 and 6 shew two modifica-
tions thereof, Figs. 7, 8 and 9 shew an elevation, a vertical section and a plan of an
apparatus with two valves for regulating the admission of cold air to the chimney
Blue. Fig 10 shows a sectional elevation of a stove with a chamber for admitting
sufficient air to the stove and also for receiving the products of combustion, this
chamber being in communication with the external air and having for its effect to
render the draught independent of the height of the chimney. Fig. 11 shews an
apparatus similar to that shewn at Fig. 1 for regulating the admission of air to the
fire place of the stove.
At Figs. 1 and 2, C is the chimney flue with draught from B to A. In this flue
is arranged a valve or damper D pivotted at o. The flue communicates with the
casing E by means of a branch tube & opening into the flue below the damper D.
The casing E has, on the side opposite to that of the opening e, a second opening f
communicating with the outer air. The casing has the form of a sector of a
cylinder in which a flap F, pivotted at g, and fitting as closely as possible to the
sides of the casing, while allowing of its free movement therein, is connected by
rod 6 to an arm m on the damper D, so that when the flap moves inwards, towards
the flue, it causes the damper D to more or less close the flue. The axis of the
flap F carries an adjustable counterweight p which tends to maintain the flap in
the position shewn at Fig. 1 so long as the difference of pressure between the
external air and that in the chimney flue is not sufficient to overcome the action of
the counterweight. When the draught in the flue exceeds a certain amount, the
decrease of pressure in the flue, as compared with that of the external air, causes
the flap F to be moved inwards by the greater pressure of the atmosphere, and in
closing more or less the damper D diminishes the draft again.
In the modified arrangement shewn at Fig. 3, a passage g. is formed at the
bottom of the casing E, so that when the flap has been moved inwards to a certain
point by the excess of atmospheric pressure, so as to close the damper D to a

page_text: y
and e into the chimney Hue, and in cooling down the contents of the chimney flue,
will reduce the draught.
Fig. 4 shews a vertical section on line A B Fig. 5, which shews a front view, and
Fig. 6 shews a plan of an arrangement in which the before described casing E is
made to form part of the chimney flue C, and has a lateral opening closed by the
flap F, pivotted at q, and having a curved flange G above which is a shield H fixed
to the casing E, so that when the flap F is moved inwards by excess of atmospheric
pressure, the flange G, more or less closes the passage a b, through which the
products of combustion pass upwards in the flue C. p is, as before, a counterweight
connected to the flap by an arm t which tends to keep the latter in the closed
position so as not to restrict the opening a b until the maximum draft of the flue
has been exceeded.
Fig. 7 shews a side view, and Fig. 8 a vertical section at right angles to Fig. 7,
of an-arrangement, in which a chamber C communicates, near its upper end, with
the stove pipe A and the chimney flue B. In the lower part of the chamber Care
valves or daps OQ opening inwards so as to admit more or less of the outer air
into the chimney flue, and thereby restrict, to a certain extent, the escape of
products of combustion and consequently diminish the draught in the flue. The
admission of such cold air will-moreover-cool-down the products of combustion and
thus effect a further diminution of the draught The flaps. OQ are, as before,
provided with counterweights p so as to keep thom closed so long as the draft does
not exceed the desired maximum.
In the arrangement shewn at Fig. 10, the stove A, has its air admission pipe T
and also its escape-pipe-X for the products of combustion, beneath communicating
with the chamber K which also communicates at top with the chimney flue Cand
has an opening & communicating with the outer air, this opening being sufliciently
large to admit the quantity of air required for the combustion in the stove. As
the exhaust produced in the chamber-R-by-the-chimney is made to act equally upon
the admission and escape pipes T and Y, such exhaust will, in no way accelerate
the draft in the stovo which will burn much the same as though it communicated
directly with the outer air and had a chimney pipe Y of small height.
In the arrangement shown in vertical section at Fig. 11 for regulating the
admission of air to the fire-place of a stove, K is a chamber communicating at S
with the outer air, and at the top of the opposite side, with a second casing E that
communicates with the fire place of the stove by a passage d while the casing K
also communicates with the stove by a passage T. In the casing K is a pivotted
flap D connected by a rod b with a flap F provided_with counterweight p and
operating in a similar manner to the flap F at Fig. 1. Thus on the draught of the
stove exceeding a certain maximum, the inward movement of the flap F, caused by
the excess of atmospheric pressure, will effect the partial closing of the flap
whereby the entrance of air to the stove from the pipe T will be more or less
throttled. The passage T may also contain a throttle valve regulated by hand.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim in respect of apparatus for regulating the draught of stoves and fire-
places, is
1, The arrangement of the plate or flap F with weight p suspended in a casing E,
and connected to a valve or damper D in the chimney fiue C, the casing E being in
communication with the outer air on one side of the flap, and with the chimney
flue on the other side, substantially as herein described with reference to Figs. 1
and 2;
2. In combination with the arrangement referred to in the preceding claim, the
passage g, whereby at a certain position of the Bap F, the spaces in the casing
on both sides thereof are put in communication with each other substantially as
herein described with reference to Fig. 3.

page_text: 3. The arrangement described with reference to Figs. 4, 5 and 6, wherein the
flap F provided with a weight p, is provided with a flange G operating in com-
bination with the shield H and opening a b in the casing E.
4. The combination with the chimney flue A B of a chamber C for the admission
of air thereto through weighted flap valves O Q, when an external excess of
atmospheric pressure occurs, substantially as heroin described with referenco to
Figs. 7 and 8.
5, The combination with a stove A of a chamber R whereby the action of the
stove is rendered independent of the height of the chimney, the said chamber
being in communication with the outer air, the air supply pipe T to the stove, and
the escape pipe Y for the products of combustion substantially as herein described
with reference to Fig. 10.
6, The modified arrangement of the apparatus described with reference to Fig. 1
as shewn at Fig. 11 for regulating the air supply to the fire-place of the stove.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant,
28, Southampton Buildings,
London, W.C.