Most fireplaces are very inefficient home heaters
Q. I have a standard furnace in my house, but I would like to add a wood-burning fireplace for more heat and the ambiance. My existing masonry fireplace seems to chill the house. What should I look for?
A. Your open masonry fireplace actually does cool your house. This is because heated indoor air is drawn in the open fireplace and up the chimney. You may feel comfortable in front of the fireplace, but your furnace will run like crazy trying to keep the rest of the house warm.
If you really do like the ambiance of an open fireplace, close all the doors to that room, open a window and turn the furnace thermostat way down. You will still loose some heated air up the chimney from the rest of the house, but hopefully much of this air is being drawn in the open window.
Every efficient wood-burning fireplace will have tight-sealing glass doors to block the loss of already heated room air. You may be able to operate some models with the glass doors opened and just a screen covering the opening, but I do not recommend burning it this way for very long. When burned properly, the efficiency of a good fireplace can be 70 percent or more.
Decide if you want a zero-clearance or masonry fireplace. If your old fireplace is large, you may be able to fit a new masonry one inside of it. If you plan to install a fireplace somewhere else, installing a zero-clearance model is easier. It is designed to be safely placed against wood wall studs.
A heating-circulating fireplace is a must for the best efficiency and most heated air output. Many of these operate without a fan and rely on the natural flow of room air around the superhot firebox. As the air gets hot, it becomes less dense and naturally flows out into the room through an upper vent. This pulls room cooler air in a lower inlet to be heated.
If you want more heat output and better control of the flow of heated air, install an optional blower kit. Each manufacturer offers its own specially designed blower kit to mount on its fireplaces. The better ones have thermostats and variable-speed controls for the best comfort. A blower kit can usually be added by the homeowner after the fireplace is installed.
For the greatest efficiency and least drafts, install an outdoor combustion air kit with the fireplace. Make this decision before you install the fireplace because a duct has to run to it to bring in the outdoor air.
I set up my wood-burning fireplace as a positive-pressure design. A blower forces outdoor air around the firebox and into my living room. This is slightly less efficient, but it distributes heated air more evenly throughout my house and I like the fresh air.
The following companies offer efficient wood-burning fireplaces: Desa International, (866) 672-6040, www.desaint.com; Fuego Flame, (800) 445-1867, www.fuegoflame.com; Heat-N-Glo, (888) 427-3973, www.heatnglo.com; Kozy Heat/Hussong, (800) 253-4904, www.kozyheat.com; and Lennox Hearth Products, (800) 953-6669, www.lennoxhearthproducts.com.
Q. I am looking for a blower/vac/mulcher instead of bagging leaves this fall. Is the rated mile-per-hour of air speed more important than the type of impeller inside? How much will one reduce the leaf volume?
A. Overall, it is better for the environment to run an electric blower/vac/mulcher than to bag the leaves and have them picked up and disposed of in a landfill. The type of impeller is most important.
I prefer a metal impeller used in the Toro Ultra and Black and Decker Leafblaster models. This costs somewhat more to buy initially, but it reduces 16 bags of leaves to only one bag of mulch. Most models with plastic impellers offer only a 10-to-1 mulch ratio.
• Write to James Dulley at 6906 Royalgreen Drive, Cincinnati, OH 45244 or visit dulley.com.