Dictionary Definition
flue
Noun
1 flat blade-like projection on the arm of an
anchor [syn: fluke]
2 organ pipe whose tone is produced by air
passing across the sharp edge of a fissure or lip [syn: flue pipe,
labial
pipe]
3 a conduit to carry off smoke
User Contributed Dictionary
English
Pronunciation
- IPA: /fluː/
- Rhymes: -uː
Noun
- A pipe or duct that carries gaseous combustion products away from the point of combustion (such as a furnace).
- An enclosed passageway in which to direct air or other gaseous current along.
Related terms
Translations
pipe that carries gaseous combustion products
away from their origin
- Danish: røgrør
- Finnish: savukanava
- German: Abzug , Dunstabzug , Rauchabzug
- Russian: дымоход (dymoχód) , жаровая труба (žarovája trubá)
enclosed passageway for a gas
Danish
Noun
flueEsperanto
Adverb
Extensive Definition
A flue is a duct,
pipe, or chimney for conveying exhaust gases
from a fireplace,
furnace, water
heater, boiler, or
generator
to the outdoors. In U.S.A. and for water
heaters and modern furnaces, they are also called 'vents'; for
boilers they are 'breeching'. They usually operate by buoyancy, also known as the
stack
effect, or the combustion products may be 'induced' via a
blower.
As combustion products contain carbon
monoxide and other dangerous compounds, proper 'draft', and
admission of replacement air is imperative. Building
codes, and other standards, regulate their materials, design,
and installation.
Flues are designed to release noxious gases to
the atmosphere, but they often have the disadvantage of releasing
useful heat to the atmosphere. In some countries, wood fire flues
are often built into a heat preserving construction within which
the flue gases circulate over heat retaining bricks before release
to the atmosphere. The heat retaining bricks are covered in a
decorative material such as brick, tiles or stone. This flue gas
circulation avoids the considerable heat loss to the chimney and
ouside air in conventional systems. The heat from the flue gases is
absorbed quickly by the bricks and then released slowly to the
house rather than the chimney. In a well insulated home, a single
load fire burning for one and a half hours twice a day is enough to
keep an entire home warm for a 24 hour period. In this way, less
fuel is used, and noxious emissions are reduced. Sometimes, the
flue incorporates a second combustion chamber where combustibles in
the flue gas are burnt a second time, reducing soot, noxious
emissions and increasing overall efficiency.
The term flue is also used to define certain
pipe
organ pipes, or rather, their construction or style.
Flue-types
Flue-types includeflue in German: Rauchfang
Synonyms, Antonyms and Related Words
air,
blubber, breeze, bubble, butter, chaff, chimney, chimney corner,
chip, clay, cobweb, cork, cushion, dough, down, dust, eiderdown, ether, fairy, feather, feather bed, feathers, fender, fire screen, fireboard, fireguard, fireplace, fireside, fleece, floss, flue pipe, fluff, foam, froth, fumarole, funnel, fur, fuzz, gossamer, hearth, hearthstone, hob, hub, ingle, inglenook, ingleside, kapok, lint, mote, pile, pillow, plush, pudding, puff, putty, rubber, satin, silk, smokehole, smokeshaft, smokestack, sponge, spume, stack, stovepipe, straw, swansdown, thistledown, velvet, wax, wool, zephyr