New Wood Stove Chimney Cap

Our Kozi wood stove is the heart of our float cabin, especially now that the temperatures are below freezing. Without it, we couldn't live here year-round. Our stove works great except when storm winds blow, especially from the southeast. On those occasions, we've had problems with smoke blowing back down the chimney pipe and into the cabin. It sometimes gets so bad we have to stop using the wood stove and bring in our portable propane heater from the boat.

Our good friend John did some research and found a new stove pipe chimney cap that should do the trick. To me, it looks like a helmet. The fin sticking up vanes with the wind, moving the protective portion of the cap into the wind, thus protecting the pipe from its force. We haven't had a strong wind yet, but I'm sure it will work. I'll keep you posted.

If you need to more information about troubleshooting wood stove issues and problems, try some of these websites:

• www. Chimneys.com -- Woodstoves and Woodstove Problems
• BC Ministry of Environment -- Reducing Wood Stove Smoke
  
• The Wood Heat Organization -- especially All About Chimneys
  
• Famco -- not our new cap, but similar
• Volko Supply Online -- describes downdrafts and wind loading

Do you use a wood stove for heating? I'd like to hear about your solutions to smoke problems. -- Margy