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Cold Air Pours In My Gas Fireplace

By
Home Inspector with Jay Markanich Real Estate Inspections, LLC 3380-000723

I have heard this so often from people who have this problem - cold air pours in my gas fireplace.

There can be only one reason - poorly-placed or inadequate insulation.

A lot of homes have the gas fireplace built into the wall and sticking out from the house.

The box is surrounded with siding and is approximately 4' x 5' in size.

The support underneath, in newer construction, is composed of some form of wood joist, typically an I-beam like the ones pictured to the left.

The protruding cavity MUST be completely filled with insulation, front to back, top to bottom, or cold air will flow into the gaps.  This cold air creates convective loops and will make its way into the house via small openings left by the gas line and fireplace materials.

In the subject house the underside in the basement was completely covered with drywall, so no visual analysis could be made of the insulation to determine the cause.  So, what to do?

This client had read some of my many thermal imaging blogs, and especially on this topic, and wanted a thermal image examination of the circumstance to give to his builder.  The house is two months old.

MIGHTY MO TO THE RESCUE.

With the fireplace off Mighty Mo had a look see.

Looking at the fireplace with the camera, this palette uses orange and yellow to represent warmer temperatures and lavender, blue and purple to represent cooler temperatures.

The lower edge of the fireplace is very cold!

The surrounding area is 68F and the coldest spots are 46F!

Of course that cold can be felt coming in.  Outdoors at this moment the temperature is not that cold, about 30F.  Last week temperatures were much colder which was felt here, and precipitated the thinking about having a thermal image inspection.

Outside, again with the fireplace off, this is the view.

This is looking at heat escaping right at the floor level, which would be just under the fireplace. 

Radiant heat can be seen coming from underneath.

This is truly an insulation issue.

Then inside we turned on the fireplace and looked at the basement ceiling directly under the fireplace, covered with drywall.

The cold areas are obvious.

Convective looping (moving air) is happening as the fireplace warms up.

The cold is forced away from the fireplace, and here the drywall is probably 16" away.

So the solution is to remove the wood luaun panel on the underside of the fireplace box outdoors, and re-insulate the area properly, top to bottom, inside to outside.

And prevent air from being able to move inside that box!

Hopefully this will control the majority of the cold air felt in the family room!  And comfort is achieved.

My recommendation:  thermal imaging is a powerful tool and can evaluate things like this in a way that is not invasive and definitive.  The camera sees very long infrared wavelengths not visible to the human eye, measures temperatures, and organizes what it sees into an image.  Thermal patterns can be evaluated across surfaces evaluated to obtain meaningful data and interpretation.  And of course, all those interpreters, thermographers if you will, are really cute.  Give one a call!  You'll be glad you did.

 

 

Posted by

Jay Markanich Real Estate Inspections, LLC  

Based in Bristow, serving all of Northern Virginia.

Office (703) 330-6388   Cell (703) 585-7560

www.jaymarinspect.com


Comments (65)

Ritu Desai 703-625-4949
Samson Properties - Chantilly, VA
Northern Virginia,Washington DC & Maryland Realtor

Jay great blog! I have similar issue when I first moved into my home 15 years ago...you are right the simplest solution was to add additional insulation.

Jan 16, 2015 08:03 PM
Russ Ravary ~ Metro Detroit Realtor call (248) 310-6239
Real Estate One - Commerce, MI
Michigan homes for sale ~ yesmyrealtor@gmail.com

My damper does not work.  I think I am going to have one of those fireplace inserts put in.

Jan 16, 2015 08:04 PM
Sham Reddy CRS
Howard Hanna RE Services, Dayton, OH - Dayton, OH
CRS

My wholehouse inspector uses the thermal imaging camera to point out to the sellers and buyers the sources of energy leaks.  What a blessing these devices have been for that purpose and also for the purposes of pointing out the moisture spots in basements and behind walls.

Jan 16, 2015 08:10 PM
Jay Markanich
Jay Markanich Real Estate Inspections, LLC - Bristow, VA
Home Inspector - servicing all Northern Virginia

Ritu - fancy meeting you here!  Missed you the other day!  Solutions are sometimes really easy, but isn't it easieeeer to do it right from the start?

Russ - that has happened to me too with age.  Oh, you mean your fireplace.  We like our gas fireplace - click of a button and fire!

Sham - I consider my camera to be the sharpest arrow in my quiver.

Jan 16, 2015 08:14 PM
Dorie Dillard Austin TX
Coldwell Banker Realty ~ 512.750.6899 - Austin, TX
NW Austin ~ Canyon Creek and Spicewood/Balcones

Good morning Jay,

Excellent explanation of as to how cold air comes in through a gas fireplace. Love the visible proof you can take to the builder . Congrats on a well deserved featured post!

Jan 16, 2015 08:21 PM
Jay Markanich
Jay Markanich Real Estate Inspections, LLC - Bristow, VA
Home Inspector - servicing all Northern Virginia

Thanks Dorie.  I assure you builders don't like thermal images.

Jan 16, 2015 08:24 PM
Nina Hollander, Broker
Coldwell Banker Realty - Charlotte, NC
Your Greater Charlotte Realtor

Thermal imaging is a great tool for inspections of things that are not visible to the "naked eye." Not cheap, but worth doing in some circumstances.

Jan 16, 2015 08:28 PM
Jay Markanich
Jay Markanich Real Estate Inspections, LLC - Bristow, VA
Home Inspector - servicing all Northern Virginia

Thanks Nina.  All true.  And while not cheap, it's less expensive than removing drywall to look inside the cavity from the basement!

It's all relative, said Dr. Einstein.

Jan 16, 2015 08:33 PM
Gita Bantwal
RE/MAX Centre Realtors - Warwick, PA
REALTOR,ABR,CRS,SRES,GRI - Bucks County & Philadel

I always learn something new from your posts. I will share this with others.

Jan 16, 2015 08:39 PM
Jay Markanich
Jay Markanich Real Estate Inspections, LLC - Bristow, VA
Home Inspector - servicing all Northern Virginia

And for that I am always glad Gita!  Share away.

Jan 16, 2015 09:33 PM
Jeffrey Jonas- Building Inspector
Owatonna, MN
Residential-Commercial-Light Industrial

Another great subject and blog, Jay. Thanks for the read.

Jan 17, 2015 12:12 AM
Jay Markanich
Jay Markanich Real Estate Inspections, LLC - Bristow, VA
Home Inspector - servicing all Northern Virginia

Glad you liked it Jeff!  Thanks for stopping by, as always.

Roll tide.  I mean, Go Pack!

Jan 17, 2015 01:13 AM
Myrl Jeffcoat
Sacramento, CA
Greater Sacramento Realtor - Retired

Jay - I'm sending the link to this blog over to my nephew who lives in Ohio.  He was talking with me a couple nights ago about having this very problem!

Jan 17, 2015 10:20 AM
Tammy Lankford,
Lane Realty Eatonton, GA Lake Sinclair, Milledgeville, 706-485-9668 - Eatonton, GA
Broker GA Lake Sinclair/Eatonton/Milledgeville

That is why we choose to go with a free standing wood burning stove.  Not as easy, but the most efficent way to heat.

Jan 17, 2015 11:07 AM
Steve Higgins
RE/MAX Kelowna - Kelowna, BC

Hi Jay,

Good post. It seems the builders don't take the time or don't want to spend the extra money to put a wood burning fireplace properly.

Jan 17, 2015 11:38 AM
Jay Markanich
Jay Markanich Real Estate Inspections, LLC - Bristow, VA
Home Inspector - servicing all Northern Virginia

Myrl - insulation is probably the culprit in almost all of these cases.

Those are great heaters Tammy, if you have a cheap source of wood.

Steve - this is a gas fireplace.  But a poorly insulated wood-burning fireplace would have the same problems.

Jan 17, 2015 05:59 PM
Mason Nettles
Mason Buys Houses - Greenville, SC
Real Estate Investor In Greenville SC

I was in the spray foam insulation business for 10 years. Those cameras made sealing up a house possible, Well... it made selling the client on leaks possible

Jan 18, 2015 12:13 PM
Jay Markanich
Jay Markanich Real Estate Inspections, LLC - Bristow, VA
Home Inspector - servicing all Northern Virginia

A thin coat of Icynene is the way to go now Mason, as a Best Practice.  Then the insulation is gravy.

Jan 18, 2015 05:02 PM
Greg Riley
Prudential AllStar Realtors - Rio Rancho, NM
e-PRO,RECS, Rio Rancho Real Estate

So fa no Thermal imaging Inspections an Albuquerque,,Great tool but I would cringe if a Home Inspector included one in his home inspection!

Jan 19, 2015 09:47 AM
Jay Markanich
Jay Markanich Real Estate Inspections, LLC - Bristow, VA
Home Inspector - servicing all Northern Virginia

I'm not sure what you mean by that Greg, but if the inspector is properly trained and experienced you have nothing to fear.

Jan 19, 2015 09:49 AM