Top sealing damper installation for homes in Silver Bluff
The estimate names the damper, its material and what happens to the old throat damper.
- Owned and run locally
- Available for same-day service
- Fully licensed and insured
- Family owned and run
Clues your fireplace needs a better damper
- Throat damper rusted shut or missing
- Outside noise carrying down the flue
- Stiff pull on the damper chain
- A cap that no longer keeps rain out
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Choosing a chimney top damper in Silver Bluff
A decorative gas appliance changes the answer
Some wood fireplaces have had a vented decorative gas appliance installed in the firebox. Appliances of that type are built to a standard for decorative gas appliances in solid-fuel fireplaces. The manual we checked for one of them calls for the chimney damper to be fully open whenever it burns.
Several top damper products carry a warning against those installations. If your fireplace has, or will have, a gas appliance of any kind, tell us. We check both sets of instructions before saying yes or no. In many of those cases, a top damper is simply not an option.
Removable lids and cleaning access
A damper at the top of the flue sits in the path of later chimney cleaning. Some damper caps have a removable lid so the flue can be reached without taking the whole unit off. Others may open far enough for brushes to pass.
We tell you how cleaning will work with the damper you choose. If a model makes cleaning awkward, we say so before you approve it. The written record notes how the lid opens or comes off, so whoever cleans the flue later can do it without damaging the damper.
Taking off an existing cap to fit the damper
Many chimneys already carry a cap when a top damper is proposed. The cap usually has to come off so the damper frame can be set on the tile. Whether it goes back on depends on the damper type you choose.
If the damper includes its own hood, the old cap may not be needed any more. If the damper sits beneath a cap, the old one returns if there is room for the lid to open under it. We explain what happens to your cap before the work starts, and a cap that has to be replaced is priced separately.
Checking a damper more often near the water
A damper near the coast faces harsher air than the same damper inland. Published corrosion data for coastal sites names wind speed, the direction the wind comes from and nearness to the coast as factors in how quickly metal is lost.
Let us know if the house sits close to the water, since that shapes how often the damper is worth a look. We note the condition of the lid, hinge, gasket and cable on each visit, so any change over time is easy to see.
What a top damper proposal should name
- Gasket type and seal check
- Cap or screen above the damper
- Firebox protected during drilling
- Written record of the damper work
Answers about top dampers in Silver Bluff
Can I add a top damper if gas burns in the firebox?
Usually not with the common products. A vented decorative gas appliance needs the damper held fully open while it burns, and several top damper products are marked not for that use. We read both sets of instructions before giving you an answer.
Does the damper also work as a chimney cap?
Some models include a cap and screen, while others are made to sit under a separate cap. We tell you which type we are proposing and whether your existing cap stays, comes off or needs replacing.
Does the chimney need cleaning before installation?
The frame bonds to the top of the flue tile, so the tile has to be clean and sound. If the flue holds deposits or debris, cleaning comes first as a separate item. We explain what we saw before you decide.
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Chimney & Fireplace Brands We Work With
DuraVent 
Olympia Chimney and Venting 
Copperfield Chimney Supply 
Rutland 
Heatilator 
Heat & Glo