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  • Chimney balloon?
  • jamesgarbett
    Free Member

    We have an open fire in one room that we hardly ever use. I’m guessing we lose some heat up the chimney. Are chimney balloons effective, if so which one or are they all much of a muchness?

    wrightyson
    Free Member

    A wedge of loft insulation cheaper?

    stumpy01
    Full Member

    We got one off eBay about 3 weeks ago and it seems very effective.

    Particularly in the high wind we have at the moment, there’s a lot less noise down the chimney and less draughty.

    I bought this one:

    http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Chimney-Balloon-for-Small-Medium-Large-Flues-Chimneys-All-Sizes-/251400003542?pt=UK_HG_FireplacesMantelpieces_RL&var=&hash=item3a889b9fd6#ht_3137wt_1149.

    We went for the large size (which says it’s 12×12, as the chimney measured about 25x27cm. But this thing is massive. It’s gone up there Ok, but I should really have got a smaller one.

    There’s an alternative called Chimney Sheep, which is made out of wool and supposed to let a small amount of air flow through to stop things getting damp. That looks like it might be quicker and easier to take in and out if you do want to use the fire.
    The balloon we bought has rounded corners to allow some flow and stop things getting damp, but we are keeping an eye on the neighbouring walls to make sure it doesn’t cause damp.

    BlobOnAStick
    Full Member

    I use one: it’s easier to fit/remove than a wedge of anything. We used to use an old pillow but removing it and refitting it so there were no gaps was a huge pain in the arse. Bear in mind that dust and crap fall down the chimney, so when you remove whatever you’ve shoved up there it gets very messy, and whilst it might sound fairly easy just to wedge something back up there I found it surprisingly difficult to do with success.

    The chimney balloon is very much easier. I inflate it using an old camelbak tube and it expands to fill the gap no matter what the shape of the chimney is at that point, and when I deflate it (sucking the air out of it) all the crap falls into the fireplace and not all over the floor.

    Beware though, I’m on my second. The first one I bought lasted less than 1 minute, as I tried to fit it the morning after having a fire, which despite me checking still had a glowing ember in the grate. The slightest touch of the ember on the balloon bag shrivelled and holed the balloon rendering it useless (this by the way is a useful feature, as if a fire was lit with the balloon in place it shrivels to nothing and you don’t get gassed!)

    HTH

    Ben

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