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The Natural Philosopher

wrote:
On Sun, 23 Dec 2007 18:47:07 +0000, The Natural Philosopher
wrote:

Once a chimney fire gets going I wonder if it's easier to stop with a
stove rather than an open fire.
Slightly.

The trick is to put the fire out quickly with water, and then block
the chimney.

Ive used a bucket of water for the first, and a couple of newspapers
over an open fire face for the second. This is the 'approved' method.
With a stove although its slightly harder to put the fire out, its a
damn sight easier to starve the airflow. Shut all dampers and doors.

There can be a lot of heat energy stored if you have good fire going
though whether its open or in a stove. It may be the approved method
but pouring a bucket of water onto a healthy hot pile of wood and ash
can produce an amount of steam whose affect in an enclosed room varies
from mildly alarming to enough to cause scalding.
ISTR that if that bucket held one gallon of water and it all turned to
steam it would take the space of about 1600 buckets.

For anyone who has to do it watch the hands and face.

You obviously have NOT done it.

The steam gets drawn up the roaring chimney.

G.Harman