Does the fireplace work?

After 20 years in the Real Estate business, I can almost predict what potential buyers (or just "tire kickers") will ask when they see a nice fireplace in an historic home.  Years ago, the sales trainers would instruct us to say, "If the fireplace works, will you buy the house?"

But my reaction is to use this question to ask further questions to determine why the question was asked, often leading to a more informative discussion about the merits of living in an old house.  Does the questioner know how fireplaces were built in the past?  Do they plan on using the fireplace for a regular source of heat, or just for holiday gatherings?  And I usually don't advise asking the seller if it "works."

I'll never forget the seller who told the home inspector he often lights the two fireplaces in facing parlors when he has guests.  He was told he was very lucky that nothing went wrong, because one of the fireplaces was in a dangerous condition (not counting the haunted clock on the mantel).  What, you ask, could be wrong with such a beautiful fireplace with a 200 year old mantel (and chimney of the same age)?  Well, if the bricks or iron decorative plate in the fire back are cracked, or if the mortar holding the bricks together in the chimney is falling out or missing, a lot could go wrong.  The carbon monoxide could come back into the house, rather than going up the chimney.  Or hot sparks could escape and set the roof on fire. And if they had burned their Christmas tree or other sappy green wood, the creosote in the chimney would cause another fire hazard.

One of the first houses I sold for a client 20 years ago had a fireplace, but the flue from the furnace ran right through the middle of it.  The buyer insisted, upon learning this from the home inspector, that the seller have an added brick flue built alongside the one already running up the outside of the house, so that the fireplace flue could be located inside its own chimney.  All this because the seller represented that the home had a fireplace.  So be careful what you wish for (or claim to be a feature of your home).

So, what do I say when someone asks if a fireplace works?  I always say that I am not a chimney expert, and the only ones who can answer that question are licensed chimney inspectors.  They can go up on the roof, see if there is a chimney cap (you don't want birds or bats flying down your chimney, or raccoons giving birth there, as happened inside my chimney), check out the condition of the mortar or chimney lining, and see if it may just need cleaning.  They can see if someone decided to use the chimney to run cable, plumbing, or electrical wires. Or, they can just give you a sooty smile, and say, " Looks fine to me!"