Re: Re: Starlings' droppings can lead to health problems

[Guest guest]

I think it is on topic. I had birds sitting on

my chimney, some times one would fall into

chimney and down into fireplace until I realized

chimney needed cap on it. I believe bird

droppings in chimney could be causing air

problems in the house since air tests right in

the fireplace show high mold. It is either

getting into fireplace by traveling down chimney

from attic or the problem is in the chimney.

Bird droppings can be food for mold, add humidity

that must be in chimney from out doors and you

have a mold problem. If it can get aerosolized

into attic through some cracks in chimney can

spread mold growth into attic. I thought it was

on topic...for ME anyway.

--- tigerpaw2c <tigerpaw2c@...> wrote:

> I know this article was a little off topic, but

> I found the wording

> interesting for the reason I posted it.

[Guest guest]

All animals droppings are very good food for mold.. for the same reasons

that its not healthy to have sewage backup in your basement.. (i.e. human

droppings..)

Bird (pigeon, esp.) and bat droppings are the worst, but cat droppings are

also very bad..They carry all sorts of bacteria, viruses, etc. too..

And of course, when it is wet, it grows mold, and when it dries the wind

picks it up and deposits that mold and that great mold food everywhere there

is a crack that can hold it...

[Guest guest]

Barb,

Have you tried running your fireplace for a few days to incenerate

anything that might be growing inside of it?

I think that would help alot.

On Tue, 31 Oct 2006 11:12:52 -0800 (PST), you wrote:

>I think it is on topic. I had birds sitting on

>my chimney, some times one would fall into

>chimney and down into fireplace until I realized

>chimney needed cap on it. I believe bird

>droppings in chimney could be causing air

>problems in the house since air tests right in

>the fireplace show high mold. It is either

>getting into fireplace by traveling down chimney

>from attic or the problem is in the chimney.

>Bird droppings can be food for mold, add humidity

>that must be in chimney from out doors and you

>have a mold problem. If it can get aerosolized

>into attic through some cracks in chimney can

>spread mold growth into attic. I thought it was

>on topic...for ME anyway.

>

>--- tigerpaw2c <tigerpaw2c@...> wrote:

>

>> I know this article was a little off topic, but

>> I found the wording

>> interesting for the reason I posted it.

[Guest guest]

That is why I suggested doing this for a couple of days. You would be

surprised how much heat goes up that flue. I actually read an article

where they state that although it seems warm in the room where the

fireplace is going it's an illusion that they heat your house. They

suck more heat out of the house than they replace by the heat they

radiate into it.

The article noted that the far corners of the house farthest from the

fireplace actually lose heat due to cold air being drawn into the

house to replace the air that is consumed by the fire and especially

wasted air drawn out the flue due to a type of venture effect.

On Sat, 4 Nov 2006 07:47:21 -0800 (PST), you wrote:

>Hi , I have had fires in chimney since

>birds were a problem. If bird droppings were far

>down into chimney that may burn them off of brick

>and hopefully out chimney, hope, hope but bird

>droppings further up chimney would just get

>'smoked' as chimney brick does not get hot except

>right down around fireplace inside what is called

>'fire box'.

[Guest guest]

Barb,

There is a massive amount of heat going up the flu of a fireplace.

Bricks are fireproof for all intents and purposes. They won't lose

their integrity until temperatures exceed 1500 degrees. That's why

they use them and rocks and stuff in constructing fireplaces. The way

they prevent your house from burning down is their mass. They are very

heavy and take a long time to heat up. They dissipate the heat back

into the house slowly over time at relatively low temperatures

compared to the surface of the brick where temperatures can easily

exceed 400 degrees all the way to the top of the chimney I would

think.

So even though you have 100,000 BTU's of wasted heat or more going

out your flu it does not get to combustible material such as

structural lumber or insulation. But it will definitely get to the

surface of the brick and whatever material is on those bricks.

Guaranteed!

I would think. A good example of what I am talking about would be

the stove pipe for a wood stove. You could have 8 feet or more of it.

Because stove pipe is thin 22 gauge (very thin) sheet metal it heats

very rapidly. So much so that 5 minutes after you start a fire if

you were to put a wet rag on it the rag would start sizzling right

away as if you touched it to a red hot burner or something. Even

eight feet away from the wood stove. All the way to where it goes

though the wall and to the outside. The reason it heats so fast is

because of it's low mass. I think the regulations for this pipe is

that it must be 3' from any walls or combustable material. The reason

of course is it would surely start a fire otherwise. Conersly if you

put a brick wall inbetween it and any combustable material you would

not have to worry about a fire, even if the stove pipe was touching

the brick. Not suggesting you do this just giving you an example of

how bricks keep the house from burning down.

I would definitely try this. I know it will help you and eliminate a

variable in what is making you react in your house.

On Sun, 5 Nov 2006 16:57:54 -0800 (PST), you wrote:

>Hi , I don't think chimney brick will ever

>get very hot above the fire box or I hope not as

>if it got hot enough to burn something off of

>bricks, it might damage house structure around it

>I would think. I think the fireplace is in an

>enclosed fire box to protect house from the heat

>but chimney is not protected, just the bricks and

>I think they are just designed to carry the

>smoke. I have heard that fireplace does not heat

>house unless you have it equipped with some

>special vents that pull heat out into room.

>Otherwise they are mostly decorative or heat only

>if you are right in front of it.

[Guest guest]

I don't think you will regret it, once you have done this buy one of

those balloons people use to stop drafts in the fireplace.

http://www.batticdoor.com/fireplacedraftstopper.html

And if you really want to you could hire a chimney sweep guy to come

and clean out all of the creosote. I would only do this after you've

run it a good long time to get all that hard crusted material sticky

and pliable so that when he comes his equipment will be more

effective. I personally would not do this myself unless I thought I

had a lot of creosote that could be a fire hazard. I am assuming

that's not the case with yours though because you said it's not been

used often.

The fireplace in the house I am staying at gets a ashtray or creosote

smell in it periodically and when it does I run a fairly decent size

fire in it for a few hours to burn whatever it is in there that smells

out. Seems to do it a lot after a rain. There might be water getting

in there somehow.

You mentioned cracked brick. Cracked brick or lose mortar might be a

problem, especially where it goes though the attic or is in close

proximity to combustible material. There's a very very slim chance

ash or sparks could come out into the attic or a wall space but

probably doubtful. I think there is a clay pipe that goes down the

length of a chimney. I am speculating here though because I have never

seen how one is built. just let the fire run down before you go asleep

at night that way in the very very remote chance there is a problem

you will be awake and able to deal with it.

MAKE SURE YOUR DAMPER IS OPEN BEFORE YOU START THE FIRE.

And that there is no cap on the chimney besides the ones that keep

rain from getting in but let gases out.

On Tue, 07 Nov 2006 01:51:01 -0000, you wrote:

>. I'm going to do this. Thanks. If I could do away with

>anything that could be causing odor inside chimney, outside can just

>be stuccoed to keep attic air from coming down into house through

>cracked chimney brick without rebuilding chimney, assuming chimney is

>not about to come down but doesn't look that bad.

[Guest guest]

That's good advise, but than again if you have insurance maybe it

wouldn't be such a bad thing lol.

On Tue, 07 Nov 2006 03:20:09 -0000, you wrote:

>-Barb, when was the last time it's been used? I'd have a chimney

>sweeper or someone check it out very well before you start a fire in

>it, it could burn your house down if bricks have fallen out or

>tuckpointing is discinagrated. its not recomended to use old chimney

>flues unless they had a lineing(fluepipe) put in that goes to the top

>and out the chimney.-- In , " barb1283 "

><barb1283@...> wrote: