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What Is The Smoke Chamber?
The smoke chamber refers to the area directly above the throat damper and below the flue. It is shaped like an inverted funnel and is designed to encourage smoke and gases to exit through the chimney as opposed to settling in the firebox or entering the home. When a smoke chamber is constructed of bricks with holes in them, or if it is not smooth, it will not be conducive to quick air travel and can lead to smoke problems, excessive creosote buildup, and fire hazards.
What Is Parging?
Parging refers to the process of smoothing and sealing the masonry surface of the smoke chamber to make it more conducive to air flow and less conducive to heat transfer. When a Magic Broom technician parges your smoke chamber, he will apply a refractory mortar either by hand, trowel, or by spraying. All gaps or holes will be completely filled and the result will be a smooth smoke chamber surface.
What Are The Benefits Of Parging?
Because we use refractory mortars to parge the smoke chamber, the process will actually insulate your smoke chamber and protect the surrounding walls from the high heat of fire. The newly-smooth surface will also encourage air flow and increase the efficiency of the entire fireplace and chimney system.
When the surface is of the smoke chamber is not smooth, it slows down the exit of smoke and gases. This extra time that the smoke and gases spend in the smoke chamber allows them to cool and settle to the walls in the form of creosote. Creosote is a highly-flammable substance that can build up and further decrease air flow (contributing to even more creosote buildup). This substance can also be very difficult to remove. When your smoke chamber is parged smooth, hot smoke and gases travel much faster up and out of the flue which means less cooling and less creosote buildup.
Let’s recap. The benefits of parging a smoke chamber include:
- Reduced heat transfer.
- Better fireplace draft.
- Less creosote.
- Easier maintenance.
Plus, when you have your smoke chamber hand parged by Magic Broom, we stand behind our work with a lifetime warranty.
How Do I Know If My Smoke Chamber Needs Parging?
You typically won’t know if your smoke chamber needs parging – that’s why annual inspection is so important. A professional chimney sweep will be able to identify a smoke chamber in need of parging before it becomes a fire hazard.
To find out if your smoke chamber is working efficiently and safely, contact Magic Broom at 301-843-1491. We will be happy to take a look at the condition of your smoke chamber and parge the surface, if necessary. Plus, when you have your smoke chamber parged smooth by a Magic Broom technician, the service comes with a lifetime guarantee! Contact us today!
