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Building a better fire

The teepee method of laying a fire is effective with smaller logs on a grate. Notice the fire starter in the center of the teepee. (Photo by James Dulley.) BY JAMES DULLEY

Dear Jim: I plan to use my fireplace this winter to lower my heating bills. Is there a proper method to building a steady, smoke-free fire?

—Chris R., Midway

Dear Chris: If you ask 100 old-timers the best method to build a fire that starts quickly and burns cleanly, you will likely get 100 different answers. There are many effective and efficient ways to lay a fire and get it started.

First, have the fireplace and chimney inspected by a certified chimney sweep.

A smoldering fire creates flammable creosote, which builds up inside the chimney and can get hot enough to ignite, causing a potentially fatal house fire.

It helps to understand how cordwood burns in order to build a hot, clean-burning fire. When a log is put in a fire, the first step in combustion is moisture boiling out of the wood. Adding damp, unseasoned (green) wood can consume much of the existing fire’s heat.

Once the moisture content drops and the surface of the log gets hotter, the wood begins to break down creating volatile gases. These gases are what actually burn and give off the visible light you see as flames. The remaining material glows red, which radiates heat out into the room and eventually becomes ash.

If fires have been burning properly, you should find some of the following signs:

• The logs continue to burn with flames until only charcoal remains.

• When new logs are added, they should ignite quickly.

• If there are new, light-colored firebricks in the firebox, they should turn tan in color.

• Any steel or cast-iron parts in the firebox should be medium brown.

• If you have newer, air-wash glass doors on your fireplace, they should stay relatively clean.

Make a decorative fire starter by placing a pinecone in a cupcake shell, then add a wick and fill the shell with candle wax. (Photo by James Dulley.) The most popular materials for building a hot, long-burning fire are newspapers, kindling or fire starters, some softwoods and mostly hardwoods. Fire starters, such as newspapers, are used to get the kindling burning. The kindling holds the flame long enough to get the softwoods and hardwoods burning.

The teepee and the English methods are two common ways to lay a fire. Both use newspaper under the andirons or grate. With the teepee method, place kindling on end with newspaper in the center to create a teepee. This method creates channels of hot gases between the logs, quickly igniting them. Once burning, additional logs can be added.

The English method is better when using andirons. Place two logs across the andirons. Place the kindling across these two logs and then place a third log on top of the kindling. It sometimes helps to place a few pieces of kindling vertically down into and up between the logs.

With any method of laying a fire, place some uncrumpled newspaper over the logs. Before you light the newspapers under the logs, light the top newspaper sheets to create an upward chimney draft. Wait until the chimney is warm enough so that the smoke rises upward. Next, light the newspapers under the logs from each side.

You may often hear the term “back log.” It is a large log laid at the back of the fireplace on the andirons or grate. It eventually burns, but its main purpose is to keep the other logs on the andirons and to protect the firebrick from intense heat. Also, the front surface of the back log should glow red, which radiates more heat directly into the room.

There are several easy methods to make fire starters and newspaper logs. Fill condiment cups with sawdust and then pour in melted paraffin or old candle wax. For more decorative starters, place a pinecone in a cupcake paper, add a wick and fill it with candle wax. Newspaper logs can be made by wrapping sheets of newspapers around a broom handle, wetting them with a water/flour solution, then removing them from the broom handle and allowing them to dry.

Send inquiries to James Dulley, GEORGIA Magazine, 6906 Royalgreen Dr., Cincinnati, OH 45244 or visit www.dulley.com.

Curing clutter

Make the most of your kitchen space

(Photo by ZOLWIKS/ISTOCKPHOTO.COM.) BY DEBORAH GEERING

Just about every homeowner would love to double the storage space in the kitchen, but not everyone has the budget to do it. Sometimes, you just have to make do with the kitchen you’ve got.

Professional organizers will tell you that there are tricks to making the most of your kitchen storage space.

“Have a place for everything, and everything in its place,” says Theda Kirby, owner of Professional Organizing Solutions in Newnan. “Clutter attracts clutter.”

Here are a few tips from Kirby and from Lisa Shaak, owner of Functional By Design, also in Newnan.

Zone it

The key, say the pros, is to create activity-based storage zones.

“Think of how you use your space, and organize it accordingly so that you have things within reach,” Kirby says. In a kitchen, that translates into zones for everyday cooking and more specialized cooking, for cleaning, setting tables and any other regular activities. If the kitchen is where you like to sit down and make scrapbooks, then create a zone for all your scrapbook activities. If you bake with some regularity, create a zone for all your baking tools and specialized ingredients, like chocolate chips or decorative sugars.

Locate each zone in an appropriate part of the kitchen so that, for instance, the cleaning zone where all the detergents and sponges are stored is near the sink and the dishwasher. Everyday zones, like table-setting, should go in the area nearest the kitchen table.

“Store everyday dishes so that you can clean your dishes, load your dishwasher or unload without moving,” Shaak advises. Good china that only comes out on special occasions, adds Kirby, can be stored in another part of the house, such as the formal dining room or a hall closet.

In each zone, store like objects in stackable containers—clear is best—and label everything.

Build a work station

One kitchen zone that’s critical for any busy family, Shaak says, is the planning center. “Most kitchens include some sort of home office area, where the calendar is kept,” she says, and this is where she suggests keeping an action file box.

“You open it up and there are files for actions like ‘to review,’ ‘to file,’ ‘to pay,’” she says. This is also a great place to file takeout menus and coupons.

One of the most important files, Shaak explains, is the “to file” file. Since there’s no room in the kitchen for all household files, it’s important to have a handy place to keep important papers until you can properly put them away.

“When you start laying piles of mail or schoolwork on the counters, it’s like a magnet; it’s going to get out of control,” Kirby says.

Store up … literally

Just like with buildings in cities, sometimes in storage, the only place to go is up.

“Frequently kitchen cabinets do not maximize vertical space,” Kirby notes. “In the newer kitchens we see more drawers that can be filled with pots and pans. However, if you want to update your current cabinets, I recommend adding pullout shelves.”

Kirby has recently become a designer for Shelf Conversions, which adds customized glide-out drawers to existing cabinets. She has also recommended the Pullout Shelf Co., which has local dealers throughout many parts of Georgia. “It’s custom, efficient and it doesn’t look like something that’s been added in,” she says.

If you’re on a tight budget, another option is roll-out cabinet drawers that you install yourself, like those sold at www.solutions.com.

Other products that maximize vertical storage space include stair-step and stackable free-standing shelves. The Container Store (www.containerstore.com) sells several models.

Junk the junk drawer

Can you imagine a kitchen without a junk drawer? Kirby can—she got rid of hers ages ago.

“If you have a junk drawer, it’s just going to be a magnet for clutter. You’re not going to be able to find what you want anyway, so don’t start one,” she says. Instead, find a place for everything, and “use dividers in your drawers so that everything has its place.”

Think lean

Before you take any of the above steps, however, ask yourself whether you really need to keep all of your possessions.

“In our business, we work with a lot of people who fall into the trap of consumerism,” Shaak says. “They get lots of stuff, and then they’re like, ‘What do I do with all this stuff? I can’t find anything.’”

Kirby recommends going through drawers and cabinets, and disposing of extra items. “Why have duplicates of can openers and spatulas when you don’t need that many,” she asks. “If you use six or eight plastic cups, why keep extras?”

Organize once, then organize again

After you’ve found a place for everything, advises Shaak, don’t beat yourself up if things go awry again.

“I don’t feel that we stay organized all the time. I think we go through cycles of being organized and being disorganized, but as long as you have a system in place, it’s easy to get reorganized,” she says.

In other words, organize to live better, but don’t live to organize. “So many people, after I redo their kitchen, they enjoy cooking again. They can find things again; it’s uncluttered, and it’s easy for them to make a meal. It’s not a chore for them anymore,” Shaak says.

—Deborah Geering is a freelance writer based in Decatur.

Replace your old refrigerator with an energy-efficient model

DOE’s online calculator can help

Have you ever wondered how much you could save on your monthly home energy bill by replacing your old refrigerator or freestanding freezer with a new energy-efficient model? Or whether it’s finally time to retire that spare refrigerator in the garage or basement—the one that’s even older than the one in the kitchen?

A new online tool found at www.energystar.gov/refrigerators was developed by the U.S. Department of Energy and can calculate the potential savings from replacing older refrigerators and freezers with new, energy-efficient models.

“Was your refrigerator manufactured before 1993?” asks Energy Star product manager Richard Karney. “If so, it’s probably time to replace it. The Refrigerator Retirement Savings Calculator is part of the federal government’s Energy Star program, which helps consumers save money on home energy bills by labeling the most energy-efficient products in more than 50 categories.”

To get the most accurate results from the calculator, have your electric utility bill handy, so you can plug in your kilowatt-hour rate. It’s also helpful to have the model number of your current refrigerator. Then simply hit the “Enter” key to see your savings over five years from replacing your old refrigerator with a new Energy Star-qualified model.

If you don’t have the model number, click on “I don’t know,” and then indicate when the refrigerator was manufactured or purchased, its capacity in cubic feet and the freezer location.

“U.S. consumers, who have seen their home and vehicle energy costs increase by 20 percent since 2004, will appreciate this handy online tool, which provides a quick, easy and even fun way to calculate the potential savings from replacing an old refrigerator or freezer with a new Energy Star-qualified model,” says Kateri Callahan, president of the Alliance to Save Energy, a nonprofit coalition that promotes energy efficiency worldwide.

—Source: Alliance to Save Energy