Yesterday was the first real chilly day where it was cold enough (41°F outside when I woke up) to have a fire going all day. I still haven't seen just how this fireplace insert will perform when the temperatures outside get seriously cold but it'll be interesting (to me anyway). I thought I'd shoot a quick video of the fire going but Oliver (one of our cats) decided that rubbing his face on my hand was way more important.
For whatever reason, he is terrified of the Wiff when she walks down the stairs. I dunno why exactly. I think it's her shoes. They make a clunk-clunk sound and it freaks him out. He's a bit of a weenie. That's why he takes off at the end of the video, she dared to come down the stairs.
Showing posts with label fireplace insert. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fireplace insert. Show all posts
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Friday, March 14, 2008
Not Quite Warm Yet
Ok, so it's harder than it looks. This is my first attempt at trying to heat my home by means other than my heating system. I built a kick-arse fire last night and the blower fan on the Clydesdale was going but it never really got warm in the living room. It got warm enough to make the thermostat turn off (we normally have the heat on at 63°F and it got up to 65°F. Not toasty certainly but enough to turn off the heat).
I think the biggest issue that we face in trying to heat the first floor with this insert thing is the sheer volume of air down there along with the layout of the rooms. The living room (where the insert is) is 22' x 13' with the insert at one end and the stairs to the 2nd floor at the other. To the left of the insert (if you are standing in front of it, facing the stairs) is the archway to the living room, in and of itself a large room with craptacular windows. Six craptacular windows to be exact. Oh, and two 2.5" holes in the floor where the radiators used to be. Currently I have a black sock stuffed in them cuz I'm classy like that. Then there's the kitchen. It's at the end near the stairs but it also connects to the dining room. The kitchen also sports it's very own craptacular windows, holes in the floor (one of which the cat's water bubbler thing is covering) and the back door.
Basically, given the time that we usually get home (5:45-ish) and the time that we usually go to bed (9:30-ish cuz we're party animals), there may not be enough time for a fire to heat all that area to, say 68-70°F. But, I betcha I can get that mofo crankin' on the weekends and maybe get it up there. We'll see. Tomorrow is Saturday and I just got a 1/2 cord of wood delivered so I'm up for experimenting.
I think the biggest issue that we face in trying to heat the first floor with this insert thing is the sheer volume of air down there along with the layout of the rooms. The living room (where the insert is) is 22' x 13' with the insert at one end and the stairs to the 2nd floor at the other. To the left of the insert (if you are standing in front of it, facing the stairs) is the archway to the living room, in and of itself a large room with craptacular windows. Six craptacular windows to be exact. Oh, and two 2.5" holes in the floor where the radiators used to be. Currently I have a black sock stuffed in them cuz I'm classy like that. Then there's the kitchen. It's at the end near the stairs but it also connects to the dining room. The kitchen also sports it's very own craptacular windows, holes in the floor (one of which the cat's water bubbler thing is covering) and the back door.
Basically, given the time that we usually get home (5:45-ish) and the time that we usually go to bed (9:30-ish cuz we're party animals), there may not be enough time for a fire to heat all that area to, say 68-70°F. But, I betcha I can get that mofo crankin' on the weekends and maybe get it up there. We'll see. Tomorrow is Saturday and I just got a 1/2 cord of wood delivered so I'm up for experimenting.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Thog Make Fire!
Huzzah! The fireplace insert thing is ... inserted! Almost sounded dirty there for a second. Yep, the guys installed it yesterday and I have to say: it rules. They got to the house at 12:30 and were out of there by 2:30. I immediately burned some scrap wood like a little kid. I was giddy! We haven't had a large fire in there yet cuz you have to let it "cure" or some crap like that. By this weekend the thing'll be roaring.
Before:
Before:
After:
And to borrow a line from cuteoverload.com...SUPER ENHANCE!
Behold Flying Boy! (he's sort of the house mascot)
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Soon I Will Be Warm
Ok, since I'm not going to sell my house (thanks economy!), I may as well make some long-needed improvements. The first one on the list is to put a fireplace insert in. Not an obvious choice granted, but I think I should get extra credit for that. Check it!
The frickin' mofo ain't cheap. That's totally not my house either. We (this is not the royal "We" by the way. I mean The Wiff and I) are dropping 4 grand on the thing (the unit, chimney stuff and installation). I do still need to fix the kitchen ceiling, replace some of the craptastic windows, repair the first floor toilet, etc. I hate it when I start thinking about the things that I really should do to that place. Everything costs so much. Being poor and dumb sucks.
I really can't wait for the insert to be ... um ... inserted. We will miss most of the actual heating season but there's always next winter. Plus, on those chilly nights in April it'll be sweet. The dudes at Hearth Works (http://www.hearth-works.com/index.html) tell us that it should be here by the end of March. Fingers crossed. Tonight we're going to city hall to pull the permit for the install. Hee! Can't wait.
The frickin' mofo ain't cheap. That's totally not my house either. We (this is not the royal "We" by the way. I mean The Wiff and I) are dropping 4 grand on the thing (the unit, chimney stuff and installation). I do still need to fix the kitchen ceiling, replace some of the craptastic windows, repair the first floor toilet, etc. I hate it when I start thinking about the things that I really should do to that place. Everything costs so much. Being poor and dumb sucks.I really can't wait for the insert to be ... um ... inserted. We will miss most of the actual heating season but there's always next winter. Plus, on those chilly nights in April it'll be sweet. The dudes at Hearth Works (http://www.hearth-works.com/index.html) tell us that it should be here by the end of March. Fingers crossed. Tonight we're going to city hall to pull the permit for the install. Hee! Can't wait.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)