With gas prices continuing to increase at a drastic rate, it can become expensive to heat your home during the cold winter months. An alternative solution available is to use Napoleon wood stoves . Modern wood stoves are energy efficient and include options for blowers to distribute heated air evenly throughout the room. Wood stoves can be used in just about any room of the house as long as you have a chimney. For areas with little clearance you can also look at zero clearance wood stoves.

Maintaining Napoleon Wood Stoves Gives You Years of Enjoyment

Maintaining Napoleon wood stoves is important for numerous years of enjoyment. You should clean the interior of the stove on a regular basis by removing wood ash and keeping it from building up. You will also want to inspect your chimney at least once a year and get it cleaned as needed. You will find Napoleon brand stoves, fireplaces and accessories for your home available here at Copperfield Chimney Supply.

Bellows - a popular accessory to help boost combustion in wood fires, feeding air to the flames as it is forced out of an expandable bladder. Though unnecessary for a gas hearth where the combustion level is easily controlled with the turn of a knob, bellows' lovely finish in attractive blends of fine woods with vinyl or leather makes them a decorative accessory. BTUs - British Thermal Unit, the primary heat measurement unit used by the hearth industry. It is the amount of energy required to raise the temperature of 1 lb. of water by 1 degree F. Catalytic Combustor - a device used on some wood stoves to increase combustion efficiency by lowering flue gas ignition temperatures. Clearance - the distance required by manufacturers and building codes between stove, connector pipe or chimney and any combustible materials. Creosote - deposits of condensed wood smoke in the chimney and connector pipe resulting from incomplete combustion. It can ignite and cause a chimney fire. Direct Vent - an appliance with a sealed, specifically designed venting system, that draws combustion air from outdoors and exhausts its combustion products to the outdoors, eliminating the need for a standard chimney system. A glass panel in direct vent units is critical to keeping the combustion system sealed from the home. Emissions - unburned gases and particles as a result of incomplete combustion. EPA Regulations - government regulations of wood-burning appliances mandating that products sold after July 1, 1992, emit no more than 4.1 grams of particulate matter per hour for catalytic-equipped units and no more than 7.5 grams for non-catalytic-equipped units. Firebacks - protect fireplace masonry and mortar, shielding them from extreme heat of the flames. Cast-iron firebacks store heat from the fire and radiate it into the room after the fire has died down. Firebacks work just as well in a modern gas fireplace as they do in a traditional wood burning one. Fireplace Inserts - heating units that retrofit into an existing fireplace (masonry or factory-built). They burn wood, gas or wood pellets and offer superior efficiency. Flue - the passageway in a chimney for conveying gases to the outdoors. Freestanding Stove - a heating appliance normally on legs or a pedestal. Gas Logs - an open flame appliance with ceramic or ceramic fiber logs placed over a burner to provide dramatic realism of a traditional flame. Manufactured log sets have a burner that uses either natural gas or propane. Glass Doors - doors attached to a fireplace to close off the opening of the hearth from the home to prevent heat from escaping up the chimney and prevent cold air from entering the home when the fireplace is not being used. Grate - a metal frame used to hold and contain burning fuel in a fireplace. Hearth - traditionally refers to the floor of a fireplace on which a blaze is built. Today it is also used to refer to all the devices and equipment used in connection with the fireplace and the stove industry. Heat Shield - a noncombustible protector used around appliances, smoke pipes or chimneys to protect combustibles from heat sources. Hopper - a container attached to an appliance in which fuel, either coal, nuggets or wood pellets, is stored and from which the fuel is fed to the burner. Island Fireplace - a fireplace that has four sides of glass, for viewing from any angle. Kindling - thin, dry wood used to start a fire. Liquid Propane - liquefied petroleum gas, available in cylinders, for home use. Mantle - an ornamental facing surrounding the fireplace or simply a shelf above a fireplace. Metal Liner - used primarily with fireplace inserts and placed inside an existing chimney (usually masonry) to reduce the diameter of the flue for more rapid exit of smoke and combustion gases. Also used when an existing chimney is unlimited or deteriorating. Natural draft (B-vent) Appliances - a gas-burning appliance that takes in combustion air from the home and vents byproducts of combustion outside the home. Natural Gas - clean-burning fossil fuel transported to homes via an extensive pipeline network. Pellets - are made of 100% compressed wood sawdust with no additives. A renewable fuel source made from sawdust or wood chips otherwise destined for landfills. Peninsula Fireplace - a fireplace that has three sides of glass. Seasoned - refers to cordwood that has been allowed to dry before burning. Seasoning generally takes six to 12 months. Wood burns much more efficiently when its moisture content has been reduced. Unvented or Vent-Free Appliance - an appliance that draws combustion air from inside the home. The appliance is designed to burn so efficiently that it eliminates the need for venting. Zero-Clearance Fireplace - a factory-built fireplace that is constructed so that it can be placed, safely, with close clearances to combustible materials.

"I have a file that says 'chimney'," said Bonnie Ford, a professional organizer, who got a fast education about chimneys at her former home in Fair Lawn.

Her nightmare began last October, about six weeks after Hurricane Irene slammed New Jersey and around the time chill blankets the air. As the seasons shift, many people, including Ford, have their chimneys and fireplaces checked in preparation for winter fires.

Not remembering her previous chimney sweep from a few years before, Ford took advantage of a $29.99 coupon from SuperCoups. The sweep came, and her husband remained home while she went to the supermarket.

By the time she got home from ShopRite an hour later, her chimney had been dismantled, lying on the ground. The sweep had told her husband that there was extensive brick damage caused by the hurricane, and the chimney was structurally unsafe. The routine cleaning ultimately morphed into a rebuild of the exterior chimney for which, Ford said, the sweep wanted $24,000.

Industry professionals say there are many misconceptions about chimneys and fireplaces, and whether you are an owner or a buyer or seller, you need to be proactive: educate yourself about your chimney and its maintenance, and conduct due diligence to avoid scams in this unregulated industry.

Last month, the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs filed suit in Superior Court in Hackensack against two Bergen County-based home improvement companies, AAA Reliable Inc. and Old Reliable Construction LLC. The suit alleges that company workers would falsely tell customers they had serious chimney problems, costing hundreds or thousands of dollars to repair. In a few instances, workers allegedly damaged chimneys and roofs intentionally, creating hazardous conditions which had not previously existed.

The companies allegedly targeted senior citizens, many of whom were among the more than 50 complainants. The companies agreed to temporary restraints, which essentially stopped them from operating and advertising while the case is pending, said Jeff Lamm, spokesman for the DCA. Attorneys for the companies did not respond to a request for comment.

"Unfortunately, the chimney industry in the state of New Jersey is quite a disaster," said Michael Segerstrom, owner of Bridgewater Chimney Sweeps and past president of the New Jersey Chimney Sweep Guild.

He said there was legislation proposed several years ago to regulate the industry, but it needed to be rewritten.

"It's still floating around but hasn't made it back to committee," said Segerstrom, who is also a board member of the Chimney Safety Institute of America, a nationally recognized non-profit educational organization.

Many variations

Segerstrom said people would be amazed at how many schemes and strategies are out there.

"The only way to get rid of bad chimney sweeps is public awareness," he said.

In the Fords' case, though they asked several times how much the completed job would cost, the sweep said he would not know for sure until he had dismantled the chimney. Several times, she said, he told them, "Don't worry. Insurance will pay for it."

They gave him a $1,000 cash deposit and put $10,000 on her credit card toward the additional work. But when he quoted $24,000 for the rebuild, "I flipped out," she said.

"I said to him, 'Before you touch another brick, I want a second estimate,' " she said.

Over the next few days, she found several chimney cleaning businesses that had different names but the same address as the chimney sweep who had come to her home.

"This is when I started to get a little bit of brains," said Ford.

Within 72 hours of his being at her house and getting a permit for the work, she got three other estimates — ranging from $10,000 to $15,000 — and stopped the credit card payment.

"He didn't even fight it," she said.

By now everyone who heats with wood should have their wood bin full. The wood you burn this year should have been cut last year or in early spring at the latest. Seasoned wood is a must for optimum heat. If the wood still is green it takes more heat to get the water out and will heat your home less. Also the water in the wood makes for creosote build up in the chimney. Speaking of chimneys, by this time you also should have cleaned your chimney or had a professional do it. More

Napoleon fireplaces come in all different styles and types to fit your home improvement needs. Wood burning fireplaces are available to update and modernize your home and require a chimney or other venting. If your home is newer, you may not have a chimney and can use a direct vent fireplace instead. This type burns natural or propane gas and is directly vented through the outside wall and requires no chimney.

Nothing says summer like the smell of barbecued pork or the sound of a sizzling hot dog and no back yard is complete without the tools to make it possible. While there are many accessories needed to accomplish this scene, the main weapon is a gas grill. A gas grill is a cost effective method of outdoor cooking. Cooking with a gas grill is as quick as turning a knob and pushing a button.

View our selection of quality gas grills