"Pat, I think you and I agree on a LOT of things.
One thing I don't want to see is more…"
Backdrafting Fireplaces and Wood Stoves
BPI does not consider fireplaces or wood stoves to be combustion appliances. Yet they produce CO and can backdraft fumes into a house.
Obviously you can't perform a spillage, CO, or draft test on a fireplace, and you wouldn't want to run a blower door or duct blaster soon after having a fire in a wood stove or fireplace.
But what do you think would be a good worst case depressurization limit for a fireplace or wood stove? -5 pascals, same as a natural drafting furnace or boiler?
Anyone ever do a spillage, CO, or draft test on a wood stove?
What have you done or recommended if a fireplace or wood stove backdrafts under worst case or natural conditions?
Tags: Backdrafting, CAZ, depressurization
Views: 400
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by Kyle Chase on -
I think a WCD of -5pa is pretty reasonable, but like Adam I would love to see some data!
-
Permalink Reply by Paul Raymer on -
The guys at the energy conservatory did some work on this a number of years ago. As I recall, 6 Pascals is enough to backdraft an operational fireplace. BPI does consider fireplaces and woodstoves CAZs.
Couple of things, though. 1. The worst part of a fireplace fire is at the end of the burn, when the chimney is cooling, and combustion is incomplete. Those romantic embers can be deadly. If a fireplace or woodstove backdrafts at the beginning, people usually don't like the smoke and open a window, which may or may not help.
2. I think you have to consider a fireplace or woodstove as a serious participant in sucking the air out of the house for worst case depressurization. I use the blower door to draw 250 to 300 cfm out of the house along with all the other exhaust appliances. No, I don't start a fire and see what happens!
-
Permalink Reply by Adam Zielinski on -
Wow that is interesting, running the blower door at 250 to 300 cfm to simulate what the real worst case would be like with a fire in the fireplace or wood stove.
BPI may consider fireplaces and wood stoves to be CAZs, but they don't have any depressurization limits or action levels to implement for them. So as far as BPI goes, you could have a house with a worst case depressurization of -10 pascals and a fireplace or wood stove, and it would pass with flying colors with no requirements or recommendations to fix anything.
Home Energy Pros
Home Energy Pros was founded by the developers of Home Energy Saver Pro (sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act) and brought to you in partnership with Home Energy magazine.
Latest Activity
tedkidd commented on Tom Delconte's blog post Robert Shiller Says Retrofits Are Never Worth It!"Bob B.
Buying a home is a good investment because it is forced savings more than a good…"
Joe Huang posted a discussionWhite Box Technologies launches Web-based weather data for building energy simulations
White Box Technologies is pleased to announce under agreement with ASHRAE the launch of WBT Weather…See More
Tom Delconte commented on Tom Delconte's blog post Lykans $29, Vampires $0 !"Bill: these are available for free at www.freeenergy.com . Just ask for Jen Guarater! I…"
Joseph Lamy commented on Jim Gunshinan's blog post The Universe Is Made of Stories"My life changed when I got 'ductalatored' - became familiar with proper sizing guides for…"
Judi Lyall joined allen p tanner's group
Energy Auditing Equipment for Sale, Trade or to Purchase
Discuss the pros and cons of the equipment you are interested in prior to purchase. Post equipment…See More
Judi Lyall replied to David Starrett's discussion I am looking for a good IR camera in the group Energy Auditing Equipment for Sale, Trade or to Purchase"Hi there
I am selling my equipment and have a great Fluke TIR for sale for 3600.00
If…"
William H Nickerson commented on Tom Delconte's blog post Lykans $29, Vampires $0 !"66 watts a/sec -3960 w/min 237600 w/hr 5702400 w/day …"
tedkidd commented on Jim Gunshinan's blog post The Universe Is Made of Stories"I think Tom is busting your chops Jim. The "drivel" part may not have been well…"
Tom Maides commented on Jim Gunshinan's blog post The Universe Is Made of Stories"Some of the best scientists of the previous 1000 years were also leaders in the Church. Aside…"
Laurie DiDonato posted an eventHERS Rater Training in Massachusetts at Maki Building Center
June 3, 2013 to June 8, 2013
6-Day HERS Rater Training- The first step to becoming a HERS RaterLast Week To Register!Your Cost…See More
© 2013 Created by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
