Do you have a cap or just leave the flue open (uncapped)

I see lots of both. I understand the cap can get to be a real mess with a creasote and tar.

Is there a problem leaving it open?

Cap here.

But every home I’ve lived in had one too.
My dad had a stove in the dungeon that had 8” steel casing as the flue and it was not capped....rain would get in and run down the shaft

Cap here. Have used one in 30 of our 40+ years of wood heat.

One advantage, is it serves to monitor when we need to clean the chimney, since our bluetooth app isn't functional for the purpose.

Cap and wire mesh to keep out animals.

A cap would slow down or prevent the roof catching on fire if you have a chimney fire.

A cap with a screen around the opening.

Cap with screen. You don't want critters getting in. My grandparents had a raccoon raise babies in their hearth and one died inside. Stunk up the house and fleas became an issue.

I clean my chimney regularly. Yesterday as a matter a fact. Pipe was fine, but damn the cap was a tary mess. Left it off, at least for now.

I reckon it all depends on whether or not you want water running down the pipe when it rains.

Cap here as well.

Cap on mine as well, but I did take the 1/4" square mesh wire off of it because it would plug up with creosote during low fire heating and I only want to climb onto the roof ONCE a year to clean my flue.

quote:

Originally posted by Yellow Jacket:
I reckon it all depends on whether or not you want water running down the pipe when it rains.

Or bats, raccoons, etc...

Cap and mesh on mine.

I clean my chimney from the bottom, inside the house with a 6" chimney brush. Also burn a "creosote buster" log twice each season.

Cap and mesh.

Heated with wood in Rhode Island for many years. Cap, definitely. Water comes down the chimney, mixes with creosote and ash, and leaks on your floor. So, cap.

Make sure your chimney is properly lined, and that the liner is in good condition. Our chimney was unlined, regular brick and mortar, so we had a stainless flue made in sections, and dropped it down the chimney from the top, fastening the segments with self tapping screws as it was put in. A stainless flue is also much easier to clean than a masonry chimney. The flue should attach to the stove with a "T", and the bottom of the "T" should have a removable cap. When the flue is cleaned, you put a bag over the bottom of the "T", remove the cap and let it fall into the bag along with all the crap that gets brushed out of the flue. Recover the cap and discard the rest.

Any woodstove will require chimney cleaning at least once per season if used for heat. Creasote and tar can be managed by burning dry hardwood and staying away from soft woods and conifers. We burned oak, apple and swamp maple, dried at least one season.

You can purchase brushes and flexible fiberglass rods with screw connect ends to do your own chimney, or you can have a service come if you don't want to skate off your roof and die.

I burn wood every day for 8 months a year. When I installed my fireplace insert I also installed a stainless steel chimney liner, 8" diameter. The chimney liner is made out of flexible SS. I also installed a cap. I do get creosote buildup, but I've never seen it as a tar...although I clean mine in the fall, just before I use it for the first time. In Oct when I clean it, the creosote is hard and flaky, almost crystallized black. Comes out quite easily with a 8" chimney brush, although dusty.

Rain cap and mesh to keep out animals. Before putting the cap/mesh on I'd get birds in the chimney.

Cap on during the spring and summer and off during the fall and winter. My Fisher PaPa Bear drafts better without cap.

quote:

Originally posted by SSgt USMC/Vet:
Cap on during the spring and summer and off during the fall and winter. My Fisher PaPa Bear drafts better without cap.

This is the conclusion I have come to as well.

Thanks guys

quote:

Originally posted by ridewv:

quote:

Originally posted by Yellow Jacket:
I reckon it all depends on whether or not you want water running down the pipe when it rains.

Or bats, raccoons, etc...

Cap and mesh on mine.

I clean my chimney from the bottom, inside the house with a 6" chimney brush. Also burn a "creosote buster" log twice each season.

Never had a bat or raccoon but did have a bird get in our wood stove at the other house once.

Here’s my procedure, I burn a lot of wood. I have a cap year round. I only do mesh from Spring until Fall. Without mesh I get birds in the Spring, mostly woodpeckers, starlings, and maybe a flicker.

Once past spring, the bird problem drops off.

Wire mesh in the Winter, burning season, hastens creosote buildup that last few feet, then the mesh itself. I usually have to go up periodically anyway to clear gutters, deal with screen when it’s time.

No critter wants to come down when smoke & heat is going up, all the cooler season.