Flue

What was William Sanders doing wedged in a Center City chimney? "He wasn't dressed in a red suit," Assistant District Attorney Elois Howard told a Common Pleas jury yesterday. "He wasn't coming in with goodies, either. He wasn't jolly, and had no reason to be in the chimney. " And it was July. The jury agreed that Sanders, of Ardleigh Street near Wister, was no Santa Claus and convicted him of defiant trespass. But jurors did give him a "Christmas present," the prosecutor said.

While you watch the logs burn in your fireplace for warmth or cheer, remember that fire could kill you if you haven't been careful about your chimney liner. This is especially important throughout Bucks County, where there are many old stone farmhouses, says Genevieve Bures, a private fire investigator, and Lower Makefield Township resident Mark Schaub, who runs a company called Chimney-Savers. The big danger, Bures says, is pyrolysis, the decomposing or drying out of the wood in the supporting structure of the house next to the chimney.

A basement heater flue is under scrutiny as one possible source of the South Philadelphia church blaze that killed two firemen last week, authorities said yesterday. Fire Commissioner Harold Hairston said the flue "is being closely examined to determine the role it may have played in this fire. " The commissioner said 13 feet of the flue is made of galvanized sheet metal and the remainder of terra cotta pipe. He said the 30-foot horizontal length of the flue is unusually long for an exhaust passage.

They've been working on the railroad - the New Hope & Ivyland Rail Road, a line that will use a 1925 Baldwin steam locomotive to pull renovated Reading Railroad coaches when it opens later this spring. The coal-fired train (No. 40) will produce steam by passing hot gases through flue tubes, which then heat the water circulating around them in the boiler. The nine-mile ride between New Hope's century-old Station House and Lahaska will be given daily, and a special "Centennial Celebration of Steam Passenger Service" will feature festivities on the New Hope platform from June 22 to June 30.

Q: We want to keep an extra refrigerator in our garage, to hold beer, soda and food for holidays and parties, but the garage is unheated and has minimal insulation. We've been told newer energy-efficient models will not last as long there. Is that true? A: Refrigeration engineers at Whirlpool say energy-efficient appliances have the same life span as their older counterparts, no matter where you put them. But a garage does present some special issues. To avoid the premature compressor failure that can result from oil thickened by colder temperatures (and cause untimely fridge death)

The Whitley family had just one day to enjoy their newly purchased, red- shuttered rancher in Willingboro, N.J. Then a dirty, malfunctioning and improperly installed oil furnace spewed deadly fumes through the 27-year-old house, killing the mother and her three young daughters, authorities said. The father found his family dead amid unpacked boxes when he returned from work yesterday morning. The previous homeowners had been sickened by carbon monoxide in October. But despite repeated service calls to the brick house on Petunia Lane, heating oil servicemen failed to find in the furnace flue pipe a hole that vented carbon monoxide from the faulty heater into the house, said township Fire Marshal Rod Hardy.

A faulty heater flue sparked a fire that destroyed a Hatfield Borough home Tuesday and caused $200,000 in damage, authorities said. Harold Stauffer, his wife and their two sons found a refuge in another home he owns in the borough, said Hatfield Volunteer Fire Company Chief Ralph Rehrig. He said it was the first time the Stauffers had turned on the heater since last spring. According to Rehrig the fire started shortly before 9:30 a.m., 45 minutes after the family left the two-story house at 318 E. Broad St. A neighbor saw smoke and called the fire department.

Question: I have seen pictures of beautiful European masonry fireplaces that can heat an entire house with only one short fire each day. How do these fireplaces work, and are they appropriate for American homes? Answer: These European designs (from Finland, Sweden, Russia and elsewhere) are as beautiful, efficient and as effective here as in Europe. In fact, there are many manufacturers and distributors in the United States. These "true masonry" fireplaces work well for all climates, from the frigid north to the mild south, and they have been used for centuries to heat homes.

Question : We bought a house last year that had a beautiful vented gas fireplace. However, we were told it was in need of a new chimney flue. Because replacing the flue was so expensive, we were told by chimney people that we could seal off the chimney and change to a ventless gas-log set. When I went to a gas fireplace store, they told us that it was unsafe to put ventless logs in a fireplace with the flue sealed off and that we would have to open the window slightly when using the ventless logs.

A couple of weeks back, I responded to a question about dampness near a first-floor fireplace that our reader thought might be related to a recurring leak in the ceiling of the room above. Readers have this advice to offer: From Joe Ponessa, professor emeritus at Rutgers University and building-science consultant: If the chimney also contains the flue for a furnace or boiler, the other possible source of the water is a blockage in the flue. Squirrel nests are one likely cause of blockages.

Question : We bought a house last year that had a beautiful vented gas fireplace. However, we were told it was in need of a new chimney flue. Because replacing the flue was so expensive, we were told by chimney people that we could seal off the chimney and change to a ventless gas-log set. When I went to a gas fireplace store, they told us that it was unsafe to put ventless logs in a fireplace with the flue sealed off and that we would have to open the window slightly when using the ventless logs.

A couple of weeks back, I responded to a question about dampness near a first-floor fireplace that our reader thought might be related to a recurring leak in the ceiling of the room above. Readers have this advice to offer: From Joe Ponessa, professor emeritus at Rutgers University and building-science consultant: If the chimney also contains the flue for a furnace or boiler, the other possible source of the water is a blockage in the flue. Squirrel nests are one likely cause of blockages.

Q: We want to keep an extra refrigerator in our garage, to hold beer, soda and food for holidays and parties, but the garage is unheated and has minimal insulation. We've been told newer energy-efficient models will not last as long there. Is that true? A: Refrigeration engineers at Whirlpool say energy-efficient appliances have the same life span as their older counterparts, no matter where you put them. But a garage does present some special issues. To avoid the premature compressor failure that can result from oil thickened by colder temperatures (and cause untimely fridge death)

Authorities evacuated about 150 homes in a development of manufactured housing in this Burlington County township yesterday after they became concerned that snow-clogged chimneys might trap deadly carbon monoxide inside. Fire and police officials went door-to-door yesterday, visiting many of the 432 units in the Tricia Meadows development, testing air quality, and offering residents lodging at nearby Thomas E. Harrington Middle School. No one was injured, officials said. By late afternoon, 29 residents, including one in a wheelchair, had arrived at the school shelter, Red Cross spokesman Pat Conners said.

Question: I have seen pictures of beautiful European masonry fireplaces that can heat an entire house with only one short fire each day. How do these fireplaces work, and are they appropriate for American homes? Answer: These European designs (from Finland, Sweden, Russia and elsewhere) are as beautiful, efficient and as effective here as in Europe. In fact, there are many manufacturers and distributors in the United States. These "true masonry" fireplaces work well for all climates, from the frigid north to the mild south, and they have been used for centuries to heat homes.

A defective basement clay heating flue caused the church fire that killed two firefigters last month, Fire Commissioner Harold Hairston said yesterday. The 23-inch flue released hot gases that ignited beams and flooring underneath the basement, causing the Jan. 28 fire at Rising Sun Baptist Church, at 12th and Fitzwater streets, South Philadelphia. The flames that rose from the beams killed firefighter Vencent Acey, 42, of Eastwick, and John J. Redmond,41, of Mayfair, who were trapped by flames while fighting the fire in the basement.

A basement heater flue is under scrutiny as one possible source of the South Philadelphia church blaze that killed two firemen last week, authorities said yesterday. Fire Commissioner Harold Hairston said the flue "is being closely examined to determine the role it may have played in this fire. " The commissioner said 13 feet of the flue is made of galvanized sheet metal and the remainder of terra cotta pipe. He said the 30-foot horizontal length of the flue is unusually long for an exhaust passage.

A sampling of children's activities, colonial cooking demonstrations and entertainment was what the Bucks County Historical Society had in mind when it began planning a new event for the Mercer Museum. Hence, the Bucks County Harvest Sampler, featuring all of the above, will make its debut Saturday. For entertainment, the society selected a diverse array of talent, from the silent performance of mime Janet Berkowitz to the absorbing narration of American Indian storyteller Roland Hill to the rousing sing-along led by Annie Patterson and Peter Blood.

While you watch the logs burn in your fireplace for warmth or cheer, remember that fire could kill you if you haven't been careful about your chimney liner. This is especially important throughout Bucks County, where there are many old stone farmhouses, says Genevieve Bures, a private fire investigator, and Lower Makefield Township resident Mark Schaub, who runs a company called Chimney-Savers. The big danger, Bures says, is pyrolysis, the decomposing or drying out of the wood in the supporting structure of the house next to the chimney.

They've been working on the railroad - the New Hope & Ivyland Rail Road, a line that will use a 1925 Baldwin steam locomotive to pull renovated Reading Railroad coaches when it opens later this spring. The coal-fired train (No. 40) will produce steam by passing hot gases through flue tubes, which then heat the water circulating around them in the boiler. The nine-mile ride between New Hope's century-old Station House and Lahaska will be given daily, and a special "Centennial Celebration of Steam Passenger Service" will feature festivities on the New Hope platform from June 22 to June 30.