Expert: James Ball - 12/16/2009

Question
QUESTION: When i burn a fire in my wood fireplace i get a smokey smell in my bedroom all the way on the other side of the house. What causes this problem? Now when i burn i also get a back draft down my bathroom exhaust fan, I have to put insulation in the fan unit itself to stop the draft.

ANSWER: Hello Steve, do you heat with forced hot air and if so is there a return (big grate in the wall or ceiling) near the fireplace? is the bath exhaust near the top of the chimney? I would have a local Certified Chimney Sweep www.csia.org, there you can look up by zip code to find one near you) take a first hand look at what you have they should be able to help.
Hope this helps
James


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: No, I have all electric baseboard. The bathroom exhaust is not near the chimney. I also had a chimney sweep guy here with 28yrs in the field he had no answer for me. The chimney is 4 feet above the peak of the house. The fire it self has a nice burn to it and the chimney goes through the center of the house. Thanks for your response and hope you can help.

Answer
Welcome back Steve, did you try finding a certified sweep that has taken the Chimney Physics class from that web site? they may be able to help.
it maybe trial and error to figure out the the negative pressure issue (air getting out of the house) could be attic doors, faulty attic fans, radon systems, cloths dryers, leaky/drafty house and so much more
good luck
James