chimney fire

[dixie_belle]

We have a wood burning stove in our garage. We burn it on really cold days so it won't be below freezing in the garage and it helps to keep the pipes in the attic warm as the garage is open to what would be our attic (if we had one). So the other day we had it going, and we hear what sounds like a jet engine running in our garage. We run out there and the chimney pipe has caught on fire. Or, I should say, the stuff inside the pipe has caught on fire. OMG. Scared the #()*^$_ out of me. The noise, the smoke, it was so frightening. First thing we do it pour buckets and buckets of water inside the cast iron stove and pour water on the outside of it to cool it down. Eventually things settled down but we could have lost our entire house. After it cooled down, I cleaned out the stove of all the water (not easy) and we started a small fire to dry it out so it wouldn't rust. We threw in one of those creosote burning logs and creosote started dripping down the outside of the stove pipe, running down all the way from the ceiling and dripping onto the stove. So this morning, we removed all the stove pipe and will be purchasing and installing new stove pipe.

I actually couldn't sleep the night this happened because it scared me so much. I'll never forget the sound it made.

The moral of this story is to have a chimney sweep come EVERY year. You don't think things like this could happen to you, but it can. And we don't use our wood burning stove often, just when it's going to be really cold for an extended period. I don't think we used it at all last year, in fact.

I'd rather be safe, than sorry.

 

[Minimor]

Scary stuff. Yes, for sure it is important to keep the chimney clean--creosote builds up quicker than one would think.

Tip--to put out a chimney fire, throw salt into the stove. My mom says it works--her sister came running in to say the chimney was on fire. Mom thought the house would burn down but Grandpa threw some salt into the stove & that put the chimney fire out.

 

[dixie_belle]

That's good to know. Hopefully I won't have to ever use that information. But I'll file it away (just in case).

 

[Riverrose28]

I know how terrified you must have been. We had a chimney fire back in the 80's, hubby climbed up ladder and dropped something down the chimney to break up a bockage that was on fire as I had the hose on and was hosing down the roof. We had also closed down the stove to keep oxegen at bay. We learned a lesson that night. We now own chimney brushes and clean out the chimneys several times a years and also use those logs at least twice a season. OUr woodstoves are the only heat source we have, so we need to be careful. That was good advice about the salt, I'll need to remember that one.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Everyone should have a fire extinguisher in house, barn, garage.

Do shut down the air.

I would be afraid of pouring water on a hot stove, as it could cause the metal to burst.

We clean our chimney every two years; my husband has all the equipment. But I think the stove folks here only charge $90 for the job. Well worth it! We only burn hard wood, which minimizes creosote buildup.

I know people who never clean their chimneys and they've never had a chimney fire. I don't know how they have escaped.

What a horrible, scary thing to happen!! Thank goodness it turned out all right, except for the mess.

 

[Sonya]

So glad nothing bad happened...we used to have a wood burner in our pole barn/garage that was not attached to our house. We couldn't find anyone to insure us, so we took it out. We do have a furnace in there too, would cost a fortune to run it even though it's insulated.

Glad you all are safe.

 

[Ashley]

We clean our fireplace every year. My mom has a pellet stove and cleans hers several times a year.