Dodge The Draft: Stuff An Inflatable Plastic Pillow Up Chimmey

DEAR MS. H.E.: A newspaper article on weatherizing your home mentioned an inflatable fireplace plug. Please give us more information on this. I haven't used my fireplaces for 12 years and don't imagine I will ever use them again. What are my options for dealing with these drafty dinosaurs?

DEAR READER: Wood heating experts at the Energy Extension Service suggest three options. The best option is - surprise! - the most expensive. That is to hire a reputable company to install chimney-top dampers in your chimneys. These are virtually air tight, they keep moisture from creeping down your chimney and rotting the brick, and they can be opened if you ever change your mind about building fires. They ain't cheap: $75 to $120 for the gizmo, and about $50 to install it. A second option is to have a piece of sheet metal cut and staple it across the front of your fireplace. Your third option is the inflatable plug.

These are a new invention - none of the fireplace stores carry them, and most have never heard of them. And the concept - an inflatable plastic pillow you stuff up your chimney out of sight - makes wood heating experts a little nervous. What if your house-sitter decides a fire would be nice? Manufacturers of the pillow - Davic Corporation, of Vancouver, B.C. - have attached a fluorescent sticker to the little hose that hangs down the back of your fireplace so that anyone settling down to build a fire would be sure to notice it, but you might want to mark its presence in even more obvious ways. To order a Fireplace Draft Stopper send $29.95 and $5 for shipping, to Draft Stoppers, No. 52A 650 Terminal Avenue South, Nanaimo, B.C. V9R5E2, Canada.

DEAR MS. H.E.: I can't believe you didn't tell your "paraphrased reader" that there's no lead in a "lead" pencil!

DEAR READER: Boy, you readers really relish finding those mistakes in print, don't you. Well, we are smarter than you think. Careful reading of "Paraphrased Reader's" paraphrased letter would have told you that not only was he a draftsman, but so was his father before him. That makes it possible that pencil leads have been used in that house since the turn of the century, long before pencil lead became unleaded. Nowadays, of course, pencil lead is made from graphite.

DEAR MS. H.E.: I have recently moved into a home in which the mold on the outside of my clay pots containing houseplants grows more profusely than in our previous home. I have also noticed that my asthma symptoms are worse in the new residence, which I thought might be contributed by the houseplants' growths, although I realize that carpet fibers, previous animals and other conditions may also be the cause. What do you recommend to control the fuzzy growths on my clay pots? Would a diluted bleach solution be effective? I realize that I can't completely get rid of them, and I prefer not to use plastic pots.

DEAR READER: Porous clay pots are a perfect place to raise a nice mold crop, because moisture constantly seeps through them from the damp soil within. Wiping the pots with a disinfectant such as bleach might keep the mold there down to a dull roar, but it's a little like mopping the floor when the sink is overflowing. Better to tackle the overflowing sink, first.

The air in your new home probably contains more moisture than that in your old home did. The high relative humidity inside can encourage molds, which can trigger allergies, which can aggravate asthma and other respiratory problems. Molds are very bad news, and if you have them on your clay pots, you probably have them elsewhere.

Buy a relative humidity meter at a hardware store - these cost around $10, though for around $20 you can buy a digital one at Radio Shack. Test the air in your house. A reasonable range is 30 to 60. If your reading is much higher than this, take steps to lower the humidity: Use the exhaust fan in the bathroom any time you bathe or shower, and leave it on until the meter shows that you've lowered the humidity; use the exhaust fan in the kitchen whenever you cook; or just open a window a crack.

Even if it's pouring outside, chances are good that your indoor air is more humid than outdoor air (most of that humidity comes from our own breath).

Now back to your pots. I can suggest two options. First, higher humidity in your new home means you may not have to water your plants as much. Try watering them a little less, and see what happens. (If the plants croak, please don't blame me.) If that doesn't work, and you still have some houseplants left alive (just kidding), why not buy some glazed ceramic pots? These aren't porous, but they aren't plastic either.

READERS: Thinking of having any work done in your garden? If so, call Metrocenter YMCA of Greater Seattle, at 382-5013, and request a copy of their free booklet, "Earth Friendly Ways to Have a Healthy Lawn or Garden: Tips on Choosing a Lawn or Garden Service or a Landscape Professional."

Susan McGrath's column runs every two weeks in the Home/Real Estate section. Send questions and comments to: The Household Environmentalist, P.O. Box 70, Seattle, WA, 98111.