Where there's smoke there's fire ...

... or maybe there's just smoke!

We returned on Sunday night to a cold house as we turn the temperature down to 50 F when we leave for the weekend. This of course necessitates that we drain the water from the pipes and the hot water heater (every time we go away) because if the electricity were to go out while we were gone, no one ... except the squirrels ... would be here to call in the power outage and the pipes could potentially freeze ... and burst. So, while the kids unload the sled, my first two tasks are to get the water back on and to get the fire going.

The water was no problem as I have finally learned that I must close the valves on the well pump AND the hot water heater before flipping the breaker switch to turn the power on. Hearing the sound of gushing water in the basement once was enough to forever imprint in my mind the proper sequence. And, in spite of the hassle of having to drain everything, I am thankful that we do have running water in the house and are not headed out to the well every day!

The fire was another story! I cleaned out the ashes (Caroline was kind enough to go dump the ash bucket in the woods for me) and got to work starting the fire. It was a bit smoky and the fire didn't seem to be burning well but this has happened in the past when we are starting with a cold chimney, which causes a bad draft. We headed off to bed shortly thereafter. Monday morning, the fire didn't seem to be getting much better. The house seemed kind of smoky and we weren't going through wood as quickly as we usually do but hey, the smoke alarms weren't sounding so things couldn't be too bad. We limped through the day figuring Tuesday would be a better day ... maybe it was just the wood.

By the time we got to the third log on Tuesday, the smoke alarm began to sound. Time to open the windows ... again. I couldn't figure out how we kept getting smoke in the house when I had been keeping the wood stove door closed. I went outside and there was plenty of smoke billowing from the stove pipe. Then, as Caroline and I sat down to read ... in the living room as our eyes were burning when we sat up in the loft ... Caroline said, "Mom, why is the smoke coming out of the stove pipe into the house?"

I immediately got the smothering log out of the fireplace and tossed it outside in the snowbank and then called Kevin, the chimney installer ... who was ... out for the day. We got the smoke out of the house, turned up the furnace, as it was now 56 F ... in the house, and I headed to town to run errands for the afternoon.

My first stop was to pick up my special order groceries from a friend who coincidentally sells the largest Farm Fresh eggs you've ever seen! (Yes, I can now get Ghirardelli hot cocoa and Indian curry paste and Buffalo Wing mix ... but not fresh Cilantro out of season ... in little ole Greenville, Maine.) It just so happens that Kevin called me back while I was at Gretchen's house so I explained to her that I was having a problem with the woodstove. She immediately told me that it needed to be cleaned and said that I should call the fire department as they would come clean it for me 'for a small donation'. She said that she would call me later with the phone number.

In the meantime, when we got home, Garrick dug out the extension ladder from under the deck, shoveled off the roof, and climbed up to take a look. While it wasn't possible to make a definite diagnosis because it was getting dark and the top of the stove pipe was just out of reach for someone only 5' 10" tall, we are surmising that the cap on the stove pipe needs to be cleaned.

Later, Gretchen called me with the number of someone her husband knows at the Rockwood Fire Department (population 4) and she in turn put me in contact with the Fire Chief. While the fire department no longer does chimney cleaning , due to liability issues, Rick is trying to find someone who can help me out ... good thing as the nearest Chimney Sweep listed in the Yellow Pages is a mere 70 miles down the road! And, if all else fails, Gretchen has very generously offered her husband's assistance. As he is 6' 8"tall, he will have no trouble reaching the top of the stovepipe!

As we have guests coming for the weekend, I am hoping all this is resolved shortly ... I'd hate for them to have to spend the holiday weekend in a house that is only 64 F ... during the day ... as we are still trying to conserve that precious oil!

Karyn