I third the messy comment. My neighbors behind have a native walnut, and although I have been negotiating its removal on other grounds (it's bending my power lines) I HATE that tree, and I am a fruit tree nut, growing 75 "pet" trees in pots (peaches, apples, almonds, etc.) When those above say "staining", think dark walnut-colored furniture or tobacco-juice color, ALL OVER whatever is underneath the tree and whereever the squirrels "spit". When I repainted my shed a butter-yellow, it had tobacco stains within a month streaking down all the walls, and that's with high-gloss paint. And let's not get into the mistletoe... A nasty, nasty tree, best left to farmers' groves, IMO! Carla in Sac

HH: I am no expert by any means, just a homeowner trying to get heat out of his masonry fireplace. I have experience with only one insert - my own. Here's my best shot at your questions: "Would glass doors prevent the cold house effect?" Yes, the glass doors would prevent the cold house effect of an open burning fireplace by eliminating the excess combustion air that is consumed by the fire. "Is there any way to get heat out of the fireplace with closed glass doors? Does enough heat radiate off closed glass doors to heat a room or more?" The problem with getting heat from a fireplace with closed glass doors is the glass itself. Most glass doors are made of tempered safety glass which does not allow UV rays to pass through and provide heat. This is why I made the comment in a previous post to possibly combine the grate heater with a set of glass doors. The glass doors in most quality inserts are made from ceramic glass which allows UV rays to pass through. Some glass door manufacturers use ceramic glass, but it can be very expensive. I do not know if a set of ceramic doors would provide enough UV energy to heat a room (I wouldn't think so, but it's just my opinion). "Why does an insert heat better than just glass doors? Afterall, the insert needs to draw the house's air too. And it is just a firebox in a fireplace which itself is kind of like a firebox". An insert heats better because it is made to extract heat from the fireplace (the glass doors alone are made more for looks or when the fire is burning down to prevent smoke from coming back into the room). Similar to a set of glass doors, it controls the combustion air for the fire by providing just enough air to feed and maintain the burn (an adjusting lever controls the intake air flow). The insert eliminates the excess combustion air that makes a room cold since cold outside air must replace the excess combustion air. As previously noted, most quality inserts use ceramic glass in the doors. Most inserts have at least one fan that draws separate room air into the non-combustion passages of the unit, circulates the air around the passages, heats the air, and sends it out of the discharge vents at high temperatures. Inserts that do not have a fan rely on natural conduction from the hot surfaces of the insert to release heat into the air. Inserts that are EPA-certified also have a "post-combustion" zone which further burns the gasses from the wood to provide a cleaner burn and as well as additional btu's compared to burning only the wood. Last year, I measured the temperature of the heated room air from the discharge vents of my insert using a multi-meter with a thermocouple attachment. I measured a max temperature of 348 degrees F at the vent, 280 degrees F at one inch from the vent, and 148 degrees F at two inches from the vent. I get decent heat out of my unit. "What makes an effective insert? Should it be made of cast iron or steel? Is the insert with a bay front a better design than the flat front because it has more radiant area?" I only have experience with my own insert so I don't think that I can provide a good response. Maybe you can make a separate post for this question. I would want a variable speed fan that is fairly quiet. My fan can run in "blow dryer" mode if I choose to but it is fairly loud at blow dryer speed so I keep it at medium speed. I think that the bay front may add more room to the firebox (not sure about this), and may provide a surface area to keep a pot of water so that humidity can be added to the room (plus more surface area as you noted). It is a nice look but you need additional hearth floor area under the bay. I hope my answers helped you.

I agree with Jakabedy - I used the bag for stuff I never used again. As a matter of fact, I just put the four love seat slipcovers I had in these bags out for Purple Heart. Mine were the vacuum-out-the-air kind. Mine did leak. Steph - I have asthma reactions to the very same things you mentioned! We get unscented products because of this. I cannot have ammonia or any heavy-duty cleaners. Gasoline or diesel exhausts and old-fashioned oil paints and stains also did me in. I stained a garden bench last Sunday, though, and it did me no harm. I think they finally got the worst chemicals out of stains. As for perfume, I get a tickle in my lungs that makes me cough uncontrollably. We had to stop going to the opera because of it. With opera tickets, you sit next to the same people each time because you all bought season tickets. One of the ladies near us must have had really offensive perfume, I just could not take it. It is no fun to spend the night strategically working to prevent myself from coughing. With your sensitivities, do you have an asthmatic reaction? Headaches?

Folks here are only going to be able to offer suggestions if you post photos of the rooms. As saypoint said above, post one room/area at a time and then define what you need help with, as in paint colors, rug ideas, window coverings. Make sure you specify what you are keeping so someone doesn't tell you to ditch the couch you just bought. Also, photos need to show the whole room/area and not just a fireplace or one wall. Finally, make sure you know/say how much money you want to spend so people don't recommend ideas outside your range.