monday, december 4, 1978
daily nebraskan
page 7
Specialists spark hot tips on fireplaces
Students lucky enough
to have a fireplace to cozy
up to while studying for
finals, can make that fire
place more energy efficient
with a few modifications,
according to UNL Institute
of Agriculture and Natural
Resources Extension
specialists.
"An important but often
overlooked factor influenc
ing fireplace efficiency is
the choice of fuel," said
Ardis Hutchins, extension
housing specialist.
Hard .voods, such as
hickory, oak, ash and apple,
burn longer and more stead
ily, producing more hours
of heat. Softwoods, such as
pine, ignite more readily,
but produce less total heat
per log, she explained.
"It's important to burn
wood that has been
thoroughly seasoned," she
added.
According to tests con
ducted by the U.S. Forest
Product Laboratory, it's
possible to get as much as
44 percent more heat from
a log by simply letting it air
dry before burning.
"Turning down the
thermostat and closing the
door to the room where the
fire is burning will also keep
heat loss to a minimum,"
Hutchins said.
Homeowners are pur
chasing equipment for their
fireplace to further increase
heating efficiency. This
equipment ranges from the
more expensive air blowers
to the popular tempered
glass screens. The specialists
said the following are
among those items avail
able: Tubes or hollow grates
can be placed in the fire
place to provide additional
heat by air circulation.
Some of these units rely on
natural air flow, while
others use a fan.
Heat-circulating units can
be inserted into the present
firebox. These units draw
heated air from the fire, up
ward to form a current by
the underside of a V-shaped
duct. The delay causes a
transfer of heat energy that
would otherwise go up the
flue.
Tempered glass screens
or tight-fitting glass doors
greatly reduce the amount
of heat loss up a chimney
while the damper is open
and the fire is dying out.
Greatest savings occur when
the closed doors control the
loss of heat overnight. A
tight-fitting metal door or
sheet of asbestos may be
used.
Bypass dampers can be
installed in the fireplace box
to radiate heat from the fire
back into the room. The
metal baffle, hung below
the damper re-radiates heat
back into the room.
"Those persons who use
their fireplace on a regular
basis should build a good,
hot fire at least weekly to
burn out deposits of soot
and creosote in the
chimney," according to
Gerald Bodman, UNLexten
sion engineer.
wm
KINKO'S
330 N. 13th
Half Block From
Love Library
Phone 475-COPY
First lesson:
Bonded Bourbon is so
unique that it took an
act of Congress (in 1897)
to establish the
standards for
Old Grand-Dad
and other Bonded
whiskeys.
100 is perfect.
Bonded Bourbon
must be 100 proof .
'-No more. No less.
Final exam.
You need only one
sip to recognize
the clearly superior
quality and taste of
Old Grand-Dad.
Cheers!
fl 14 fj '"'?6 I Will S- ; -
Old Grand-Dad
Bonded is authentic
Kentucky sour-mash
Bourbon, made with
pure limestone water,
the finest grains,
and aged in new
charred-oak barrels.
Only Bonded
whiskeys have a green
tax stamp. It's your guar
antee that the whiskey is
at least four years old.
Old Grand-Dad Bonded is
always aged longer.
J