When I went out to the living room this morning I noticed cold air was pouring from our fireplace into the room. Naturally, since cold air falls the chimney makes a great conduit for the arctic air to find refuge in our living room. The glass doors in the fireplace don’t provide much protection either. We used to have pieces of cardboard wedged into the opening behind the glass doors to keep the drafts out. I think they disappeared while we were away on our last furlough. The house-sitters must have removed them. I guess they thought fireplaces are for using.
We’ve tried using it other years. But it smokes too much. Even with the flue open all the way. It seems pointless to use the fireplace to heat the house if we have to keep a window open to prevent headaches.
There’s also no way to circulate any heat that is generated in the fireplace. And the rooms are mostly open plan so there is no way to trap the warm air in one area to really get it warm.
I don’t think the home builder in this area meant people to use fireplaces for serious heat. It’s just a marketing gimmick. Like how realtors suggest baking a pan of cookies before potential buyers come to look at a house for sale. A house seems more home-like and cozy with a fire-place. People expect it. So the builder added them.
I’m thankful they also added an electric forced air furnace system.
This morning when I discovered the cold air coming In I took quick action. I piled boxes and blankets and anything that looked like it would block the air and provide adequate insulation. It looks a little eccentric, I suppose, but it will no doubt save dollars on our heating bill and help our furnace not get too over worked during this cold snap.
I notice some of my neighbors have smoke coming out of their chimneys this morning. So I guess some people think it is worth while to burn things in their fire place. Maybe their's works better. Or they are less sensitive to smoke fumes.
Hopefully they are not like E, another neighbor, who doesn't have electricity and is using her fireplace to survive. John went to check on her last night and take her some wood. We were prepared, despite all the advice we've been given to the contrary, to offer her shelter here if she needed it. I was worried because the weather prognosticators said it would be the coldest it has been in over 20 years!
But when John checked on her she was doing fine. She had company for the night, or as John put it, a "self-heating water bottle."
Apart from the morality issue, it was a relief to know she would not be alone and would not likely freeze. As a Christian and missionary, I realize, some people might think I shouldn't feel that way. But her life is such a constant unending mess. We have wracked our brains and worn ourselves out in the past trying to help her. She has worn out everyone who tries to help her for all the years I've known her. She seems to bounce back while the rest of us are still reeling from whatever crisis she dragged us into.
She was away for several months last year. Now that she is back again I'm trying not to let myself get sucked into the vortex again. But yesterday I was doing it again, wearing myself out trying to get advice and help for her. Then I realized she would be ok. She is good at finding help and somehow managed to survive the last cold snap we had a few weeks ago. She is a survivor.
1/18/18 Note: John suggested that maybe the damper is still open. I did think of that but only after I had piled all the stuff up there. Since it is working to keep the cold air from coming in, I will wait until after the weather warms up again tomorrow and remove it all and then check the damper.
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