Safety
AROUND YOUR HOME

Before you fire up the fireplace...

Bill Campbell

Late Fall in Illinois...Talk about unpredictable! Two years ago, my family came from Western Iowa for Thanksgiving and we were able to enjoy shirtsleeve temperatures outdoors. Last year we were getting a taste of early winter by the first week of November. Whichever type of weather we get this year, I am making final plans for using our fireplace as the temperatures drop.

My home has two separate fireplaces. The one in the basement has a natural gas log, but it doesn't get used since that room was assigned toy room duty for our three boys. The upstairs fireplace is in our family room. It is a wood-burning masonry chimney model that I enjoy on cold winter days. While the fireplace seems to lighten the heating load of our family room furnace, I doubt that it saves me anything by the time I open doors to go outside several times and bring in wood.

This efficiency concern is backed up by a report about wood heating contained in an Illinois Department of Energy and Natural Resources (now Department of Commerce and Community Affairs-Bureau of Energy and Recycling) publication. It says that most built-in fireplaces are likely to be only 0 percent to 25 percent efficient. That means 75 percent to 100 percent of the heat available in the wood burned goes up the chimney. Couple this with the increased danger of home fires, and you may have second thoughts about wood burning.

I don't think everyone should give up their fireplaces. But there are some things you should consider to make your fireplace safer and more efficient.

Most important for any wood-burning device is to have the chimney cleaned and inspected prior to each heating season. If there are cracks in the masonry, or holes in the metal chimney pipe, they should be repaired before using your fireplace. Overlooking this problem could lead to fires or carbon monoxide poisoning. Cleaning will also remove and help prevent the build-up of creosote in the chimney. This black sticky substance is what causes fires that ruin chimneys or burn homes. Creosote build-up can be prevented by allowing the fireplace to heat up to a high temperature each time it is used and by using seasoned (dry) dense hardwoods for fuel.

Another method of improving fireplace efficiency is the installation of glass doors. This keeps the heat in your home from going up the chimney while your fire is going. Glass doors also prevent the possibility of fires in your home caused by sparks that can be thrown from the fireplace.

The last method of improving fireplace efficiency is to install an air circulating device. These may be circulating grates or wall vents. Both devices can use convective air currents (hot air rises) to push the air or they can be fitted with small circulating fans. The difference in these devices is that the grates can be retrofitted to existing fireplaces. Wall vents usually need to be installed when the fireplace is built.

Installation of circulation devices and glass doors will raise the efficiency of your fireplace, but only to as much as 25 percent to 30 percent. They still waste a considerable amount of energy.

If you are considering wood heating for your home, free standing and airtight wood stoves can achieve as much as 45 percent to 65 percent efficiency. However, they can still be a potential fire and carbon monoxide hazard. Check on Underwriters Laboratory approval and install all home heating components according to the manufacturers' instructions.

For more information about home heating and energy conservation, contact your local electric cooperative, heating contractor or the University of Illinois Cooperative Extension unit office in your county.

Bill Campbell is an Extension Educator, Farm Systems, at the Springfield Extension Center, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Illinois. You can write to Campbell in care of Illinois Country Living, P.O. Box 3787, Springfield, IL62708. Telephone: 217-782-6515. E-Mail: campbellw@idea.ag.uiuc.edu

14 ILLINOIS COUNTRY LIVING NOVEMBER 1996