Be prepared for sticker shock - prices are going up on everything

Consumers should be prepared for sticker shock when it comes to chimney repair or hearth appliances, since everything has gone up in price. Not only that, but wait times can be weeks or months due to the increased demand. Manufacturers are having a difficult time keeping up with the demand for products. 

This is frustrating for the homeowners and their providers as well. In some cases, standard freight costs no longer exist and the dealers must pay whatever the freight lines charge. This makes it impossible to tell a buyer what their final price will be for a hearth appliance.

• Aluminum prices have increased by 20%
• Cold Rolled steel has increased by 160%
• Stainless steel price increase is 10%
• Lumber price increase is 130%

Domestic Freight has increased by 5% and is expected to rise due to gas price increases. 

Expect to pay more for gas hearth appliances, wood-burning stoves and inserts, aluminum flue liners for gas, and stainless steel flue liners and chimneys for wood-burning appliances, plus additional freight cost. 

There is some good news, however. The 26% tax credit is in effect, so could offset costs for a hearth appliance and it's chimney, plus installation costs. For this reason, now is the time to purchase a hearth appliance.  Read more about the tax credit at the Hearth, Patio, and Barbecue website.  

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Marge Padgitt is the CEO of HearthMasters, Inc. chimney & fireplace restoration company in Kansas City, Missouri. 

Health Benefits of a Fire in the Hearth

What is it about a fire in the fireplace that immediately elicits feelings of comfort and ease?  Is it the warmth, the sound of gentle crackle and pop, the rhythmic pattern of undulating flames…?

Perhaps all three; along with the added benefit that a fire invites us to slow down, sit down, and enjoy it.

Our modern lifestyle can keep us in a constant state of high alert status, or the “fight, freeze or flight response.”   (FFF) This is a normal, healthy response to stimulus or threat that has kept us humans on the planet for millennia.  A tiny, 2-part gland called the Amygdala that rests in the center of our brains is programed to keep us safe by remembering a threat and triggering a response to it.  IE: Stimulus = Saber-toothed Tiger, Response = Fight, Freeze or Flight.

However, that ancient protective response can be triggered by not-so-life-threatening stimulus in our world today.  In its effort to make sense of the stimuli that it is constantly bombarded with, the Amygdala can generalize and lump vaguely similar threats together.  Think about your most recent trip on a highway.  Did someone cut you off?, not let you in traffic?, run a stop sign? (and you had your kids in the car- whew!)  Your Amygdala reads those stimuli in exactly the same way it has been programmed to read “Saber-toothed tiger” – Yikes!  In addition, the sub-conscious does not know the difference between “real” and “virtual,” so even violent or disconcerting images on TV and through other media can prompt the FFF response.

That protective response floods the body with adrenaline, increases heart rate, slows digestion, tenses muscles and pumps blood to the extremities for fight or flight, leaving the brain sorely lacking in the nourishment it needs for optimal function and us feeling like we just ran a marathon.  No wonder we are tired after a long day!

A surprisingly simple, comforting and elegant way to de-stress and sooth the FFF response is to enjoy the benefits a fire in the hearth.   

Raising body temperature just a few degrees allows more efficient circulation; relaxing the muscles and bringing essential nutrients and oxygen to all parts of the body; creating a feeling of safety, security and ease.

The sound of the gentle sizzle and crackle of the burning wood serve as pleasant “white noise” which gives the brain just enough to occupy it, allowing other over-stimulated parts (ie: the Amygdala) to relax and rejuvenate

The almost hypnotic visual pattern created by dancing flames also provide as a pleasant pre-occupation for an over-stimulated brain and may even induce an Alpha brainwave response similar to that experienced in meditation or hypnosis.

Maybe our ancestors were on to something.  After a hard day in Saber-tooth-ville- Fire Good Medicine.

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Alice Brink is a Self-Empowerment Coach, Trainer and Mind/Body Healthcare Practitioner and may be reached at www.alicebrink.com

Hearth Applicance Installation Training For Pros Aug 8-10, 2014

The Midwest Chimney Safety Council is hosting a charity hearth workshop August 8 - 10, 2014 at the Boy Scout Camp at Lake of the Ozarks. 

The workshop includes installation of a wood-burning freestanding stove, installation of a Class A stainless steel chimney, different methods of crown building, how to build your own chimney chase top, and Business and Personal Risk Management. Instructors are Steve Hoover, Gary Hart, Gene Padgitt, and Lisa Hatcher.

An auction will be held with auctioneer Steve Hoover and items donated by suppliers and manufacturers in the industry. 

Camping is available on site or stay at a nearby hotel. 

CEU's have been applied for from the Chimney Safety Institute of America and the National Fireplace Institute.

The MCSC will also hold their annual meeting.

All hearth and chimney professionals and their employees are invited to attend. Visit the website at www.mcsc-net.org for registration and pricing information.