Chrome air vents & venting unused chimneys

[Jim B]

I've removed a fire from a chimney breast due to it not being needed as central heating is installed and would like to put something nicer looking than a plaster or plastic air vent on the chimney breast. I've looked in places like B&Q but all I seem to find are aluminium vents which don't look that nice. I wonder if anyone can help me locate polished chrome vents?

Regarding the question of venting unused chimneys, I read a while back that you can put the vent on the outside of the stack to avoid having an unsightly grille vent in the room, but I've since been told that this won't help the chimney to vent properly as it really needs warm air to vent it efficiently and not the cold air that an outside vent would bring. Any thoughts?

[Peter Taylor]

Chrome air vent here:

many others if you google for chrome vent

The grille most certainly should go outside whenever possible - it's the best place. The only reason for venting the flue is to encourage condensation to evaporate. Warm internal air will carry much more vapour than cold external air, and therefore much more condensation will be formed in the flue if you have the grille internally.

Peter

[Andrew Gabriel]

A vent works fine on the outside. If you have the top capped, you must have a vent at the top too (both ends must be vented). A flue vented from a room can draw as much as a kW of heat from the room, which is probably something you would want to avoid.

[Jim B]

The chimney stack covers 3 floors, do you think an external vent on each floor is necessary or just one on the bottom and one on the top?

Rather than capping the top and putting a vent at the top, what about if I just put a cowl on the chimney to stop the rain getting in, wouldn't that be the same as capping and venting?

Jim

[Andrew Gabriel]

Just bottom and top. It will generate its own draft.

Yes. However, I wouldn't bother doing anything at the top unless you're up there for some other reason. I was just warning not to cap it leaving it sealed. IME, the amount of rain which enters a pot does not cause any harm in a vented flue.

[Peter Taylor]

I once found a frog in our fireplace that must have been dropped down the chimney! I'd put one of those flue ventilator inserts in the pot - the type with holes round the edge