Bird can fly into chimney serving open-vented gas fire!

[Ric2013]

Is it usually considered acceptable for an open-vented gas fire (by which I mean one which vents its exhaust gases up a chimney by natural draught) to have a terminal that will allow a bird into the chimney?

Got a phone call from my mother yesterday. She's not going to be able to meet me after all because a bird has flown down the chimney and she wants to try to get it out. In the end, it got itself out - she couldn't access the chimney anyway because the fire is a gas fire. It is a standalone gas fire, fake coal effect thing (the boiler is a separate item, in a different room).

While she is going to have the heating and gas system inspected and, I'd hope, serviced, by a GSR, I just wanted to know if, mentioning no model numbers or codes, it is usual for an open vented gas fire that uses an old chimney (presumably lined) to have a flue termination that is so open that a bird can get in.

My hunch is that this it likely to be considered an unsafe installation.

Can GSRs please give a general opinion as if the install gets an all-clear, I'm going to need to talk my mother into getting a second opinion.

Hope this query is general enough not to breach UKPF policies? I've done my best... hope it's good enough.

Many thanks,

R

 

[Darren Jackson]

Hi, yes it is quite usual, In my time servicing fires I have found a few dead birds at the back of fires. It is not a safety issue and the installation is not deemed unsafe unless the chimney is in a poor condition. Or fails the flue tests. You can by a balloon to fit in the chimney pot to stop it happening again.

 

[Chalked]

All gas fires using chimneys should have a suitable terminal fitted.

 

[Darren Jackson]

All gas fires using chimneys should have a suitable terminal fitted.

Agreed and one of the suitable terminals is considered to be the original old style open chimney pot, but without a gas approved balloon, cage, basket or whatever you want to call it fitted to the terminal it wont stop birds from ocasionally getting down the flue.