Flue Damper Tools, Tips and Techniques Discuss Flue Damper in the Pizza Oven Design and Installation forums; I am not seeing anybody use a damper on their flue. Or am I just not seeing it? Do you ...

[lwood]

I am not seeing anybody use a damper on their flue. Or am I just not seeing it? Do you need a damper to prevent heat loss or any other reason?

[jmhepworth]

The chimney is outside the oven, above the vent. When you cook pizza with the fire burning, the vent and chimney keep the smoke out of your face and create a convection in the oven. Cold air comes in from the vent into the oven, and hot air comes out the top of the oven and up the chimney. It's actually pretty cool to watch. When you heat the oven and have fire from hell burning in it, the flames curl around the top of the oven, out the arch into the vent, and up the chimney.

If you use the oven to cook with retained heat, you close it off between the vent and the dome, so the chimney is outside what you close off. No damper necessary.

Joe

[nissanneill]

All a damper is going to do is to restrict the flow of your smoke and hot gasses that are exiting your oven. If 'choked down' too much, the you will get the smoke and gasses out the front of your oven, making it stained and hot and dangerous for the users.

Neill

[dmun]

The only time a damper is needed is for an inside oven, to prevent heat loss from the room when you're not using the oven, just as a masonry fireplace would have. Outside? Not needed.

[lwood]

Thanks Joe, when you said "....If you use the oven to cook with retained heat, you close it off between the vent and the dome, so the chimney is outside what you close off. No damper necessary." I realized I was messed up. I was thinking that the vent door stop was before the flue rather than all the way to the dome. Now I understand, thanks. going to have to go back and look more closely at some more pics.

[jmhepworth]

You might see pictures of a door between the outside and the vent. Most of the time that's to keep weather out. I believe I've read something about someone using an outer door to control the fire as well. But the vast majority of doors are between the vent and the oven. That's why it's important to put a little reveal (make the vent tunnel a little wider than the inner arch) for the door to butt up against. You can see the one inch reveal (actually, its a little less than an inch, but I wanted it to be an inch) on the picture of my arch.

Joe

[lwood]

It's funny when all of a sudden a light comes on when you understand how it is suppose to be. That damper thing was bothering me for a long time. I suppose I would have caught this at some point especially if I had looked at the FB drawings haha. It's difficult enough to build this project with all the intricacy. Even with pictures you do not catch all of them.

That's the beauty of this forum. You need some answers, there are lots of people and expertise to immediately set you straight. And a special thanks to the Forno Bavo people for sponsoring this and their infinite wisdom. Just had to say that.