On Sep 2, 10:46*am, mm wrote:
On Thu, 02 Sep 2010 08:20:09 -0400, Jim Elbrecht
wrote:



mm wrote:

When did they start putting dampers in chimneys?

The 1700's house we lived in when I was a kid had dampers in all 6
fireplaces. * *No one had lived in it since the Civil War- so the
dampers were installed before that. *They appeared to be original.

At one time fireplace chimneys went straight to the top with nothing
interfering, right?

Caves and teepees had no dampers. * * I think Franklin writes about
the value of a damper in his patent on his friend's stove. *[around
1750 and not much like the 'Franklin' stove we know of today]

But my fireplace chimney has a damper, which I use to keep the indoor
air from escaping when there is no fire. *

It can also be used to slow down a fire, perhaps? *Hence the name?

Originally, maybe. * *Houses don't usually have enough airflow to try
that today-- *you could open a window in the room. *

Aren't dampers universal in chimneys therse days.

When did that start?

I would guess mid-1800's-- but that's just a guess. *

Jim

Thanks all. *Thats' what I sort of thought, not counting what Harry
said.

==
Dampers controlled the rate of combustion in all kinds of stoves and
fireplaces. Without them a good many homes would have burned down. If
all the fireplaces in North America were closed off or removed we
could save one pile of money on energy. The wasted heat from
fireplaces is totally unnecessary.
==