Well, That was Exciting!
By Morley Hunt
@Morleyhunt (21741)
Canada
February 13, 2016 5:58pm CST
Our living room has a very attractive fireplace.
We know the previous tenant used this fireplace frequently.
In December we purchased a grate, a bucket and a screen as well as the appropriate tools. We have the seasoned wood and the kindling waiting.
Today was the day. We opened the damper and lit the wood. It caught almost instantly.
The chimney did not draw. Smoke filled the living room. We opened the windows. I ran outside to see if any smoke was coming out of the chimney.
There was smoke pouring out of the open windows, but not the chimney.
My husband attempted to adjust the damper....yes, it was open.
Now to remove the burning wood. The smoke detector is screaming. The smoke continues to pour into the house.
My husband and I are both coughing, our eyes are streaming with tears. The wood is successfully removed to a bucket and out of the front door.
Every window in the house is open (the temperature outside is -19C or -5 F). I carry a fan in from the garden shed.
Now the smoke has cleared. The windows are closed. We looked at each other and burst out laughing.
Well, that was fun! What should we do for an encore? 
23 people like this
20 responses
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
14 Feb 16
I guess we'll be finding that out as soon as the weather warms up and hubby climbs onto the roof.
2 people like this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
14 Feb 16
@JudyEv time will tell. It's too cold to climb up there today. -27C brrr.
2 people like this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
14 Feb 16
There is a chimney cap with a screen to keep out birds and rodents. I am curious to know what is blocking the chimney. I'm sure when we find out I'll be writing about it.
2 people like this
@JudyEv (381931)
• Rockingham, Australia
14 Feb 16
@Morleyhunt Does the cap and screen stay there permanently? I wonder what the answer will be.
2 people like this
@simone10 (54180)
• Louisville, Kentucky
15 Feb 16
@Morleyhunt That's good. The smoke detector can b so annoying at times.
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
14 Feb 16
I hit the pause button and set the smoke detector outside until we had everything under control again.
2 people like this
@pgntwo (22405)
• Derry, Northern Ireland
15 Feb 16
@Morleyhunt Sounds like the safest course of action, in the short term.
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
15 Feb 16
There is nothing blocking the bottom of the flue. There will be no more attempts at a fire for at least a week.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
15 Feb 16
I had all the windows open once in January when I burned my soup.....to ashes.
1 person likes this
@paigea (36143)
• Canada
15 Feb 16
@Morleyhunt That is exactly what happened to my pot of stew that I left on when I went out. The neighbours broke in, let the dog out and called the fire department. I don't know who grabbed the pot, with the burner welded to it, and threw it outside. The fire department lent me some industrial fans for a couple of hours. I had to wash every wall, article of clothing, etc. in the house. If your soup was reduced to ashes, your house must have been pretty bad too. Maybe since I was out, the smoke smell got more entrenched in every thing. Any way, I consider it a lucky lucky escape.
1 person likes this
@fishtiger58 (29819)
• Momence, Illinois
14 Feb 16
Oh wow good thing you both acted quickly. Something is blocking that chimney for sure. Hubby has another job on the to do list.
2 people like this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
18 Feb 16
It will be at least a week or two before he can climb up...a lot of snow needs to melt.
1 person likes this
@fishtiger58 (29819)
• Momence, Illinois
18 Feb 16
@Morleyhunt Don't want to be on the roof with snow up there.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
14 Feb 16
I'm sure it will be added to the hilarious stories that are recounted. The post hole auger incident, the lawn mower, teaching the second daughter to drive.....hmmm.....I have lots of material to write about.
2 people like this
@scheng1 (24649)
• Singapore
14 Feb 16
How did the ex-owner get the smoke to go up the chimney?
if he is living in the area, you may call him for assistance.
Fortunately you do not live near the fire department. They will hose your house down when they see all the smoke coming out of the window.
2 people like this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
14 Feb 16
The owner of the house lives across the road. He hasn't had a fire in that fireplace for 30 years. The previous tenant is living 4,000 km away. We'll be checking the chimney for any blockage in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, only candles will provide the flickering flames behind the fire screen.
1 person likes this
@BelleStarr (61463)
• United States
14 Feb 16
lol Well I would call the chimney sweep!! lol Sounds like the stack needs a cleaning. Maybe a bird nest?
2 people like this
@BelleStarr (61463)
• United States
15 Feb 16
@Morleyhunt lol I hope you find out soon so you can use your fireplace.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
14 Feb 16
It shouldn't be a birds nest. There is a screen around the chimney cap. I wonder if it's a bee hive or wasps nest. We smoked them out if nothing else.
3 people like this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
14 Feb 16
My husband will be climbing on the roof to check it out.....meanwhile no fires for the moment.
2 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40844)
• Laguna Woods, California
14 Feb 16
Oh, no! I'm sorry that the fireplace did not work. You need to get someone out to check on it!
2 people like this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
14 Feb 16
We will be checking it out, probably next week when the outdoor temperatures are warmer. We have had fireplaces before, we used a wood stove for 12 years. This is the first time we had a chimney that would not draw.
1 person likes this
@andriaperry (118793)
• Anniston, Alabama
14 Feb 16
National Lampoon, that`s what this brought to mind :)
2 people like this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
14 Feb 16
I was thinking...Keystone Cops routine. This isn't the first comedy routine we have accidentally performed. Thank goodness we both have a slightly skewed sense of humour. We can almost always laugh about it afterwards.
1 person likes this
@Ladypeace (2028)
• Singapore
14 Feb 16
It's fun how you and your husband could make light of the situation!
2 people like this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
14 Feb 16
We have learned to laugh at the absurd situations we create. This one was quite serious until we could stop producing smoke. The coughing and choking wasn't pretty. The house still has a bit of "eau de smoke" to help us remember.
2 people like this
@teamfreak16 (43579)
• Denver, Colorado
14 Feb 16
Wow, that does sound exciting. I'd probably have panicked and ended up burning down the house or something.
2 people like this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
14 Feb 16
We had a moment or two we saw this as a frightening possibility.
2 people like this
@Pose123 (21635)
• Canada
17 Feb 16
I loved the fact that you both got a good laugh out of the whole ordeal! I guess there could be a birds nest in the Chimney and I'm sure that you'll get everything checked out before another attempt - but you've already made my day. If only more people would react that way and not let such things ruin their day. Blessings.
1 person likes this
@41CombedaleRoad (5966)
• Greece
17 Feb 16
What a disappointment for you, perhaps a chimney sweep might bring the matter to a more satisfactory conclusion. It was an exciting read anyway!
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
18 Feb 16
We are waiting for some of the snow to melt so that we can climb on the roof to inspect the chimney from the top.
@Juliaacv (56227)
• Canada
14 Feb 16
Wow, it sounds like maybe there is a blockage somewhere in the chimney. We used to have a wood stove that we burned wood in at the last house that we lived in. We bought extension poles and the brush to clean all of the way up to the top. Good luck with figuring it all out, hopefully you weren't planning on a nice roaring fire for valentines day.
2 people like this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
14 Feb 16
We heated our house with a wood stove for years. We will be checking the chimney in the next few days. For now we will go back to candles for the ambiance.
2 people like this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
13 Apr 16
My husband has never bothered to climb the chimney to find the obstruction. Me, I just set a couple of candles in the fireplace for athe ambiance. Having the screen keeps the grandkids and the dog from getting too close to the candles.
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
15 Feb 16
We were moments from calling the fire department. We managed to get it out. Now to get rid of that smoky smell.
1 person likes this
