Part five of a series

CUMBERLAND -- After spending $3,000 on oil last winter Tom and Olivia Bousquet decided now was the time to put their fireplace to work.

On a Tuesday, their new pellet stove arrived. It was a $4,800 investment for the stove, the piping, the installation and the pellets.

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"We know it's not going to pay off this year," said Olivia, because of the up-front investment. But the Bousquets anticipate big savings over the next few winters as the stove makes their fireplace a source of heat for their sweeping, vaulted living room and a portion of the first floor of their 4,000-square-foot house. One ton of pellets, enough for a month, costs $200. A month of oil costs about $600, said Tom.

"I hope we made the right decision," said Olivia, as two installers slipped the 200-pound black stove into their square fireplace.

With heating costs this year expected to rise significantly compared with last winter, it's time to turn that gaping brick hole in the living room into something other than a heat-sucking money pit.

Fireplaces are not heat sources. When they aren't being used, they can leak warm air. And when they are being used, they are 90-percent inefficient because they "take heated room air, burn it and send it out the flue," said Rich Davis, category manager of fireplaces for Homeclick.com, a home-improvement Web site based in New Jersey.

"The masonary fireplace is an open window to the outside," he said.

There are several things homeowners can do to stop their fireplaces from sending heating dollars out the chimney. And for those willing to invest some money, such as the Bousquets, it's possible to actually turn those fireplaces into cost-effective heat sources.

To start, think of the fireplace as a doorway. Most fireplaces have a damper at the top of the firebox, which acts like the door. This should always be shut if the fireplace is not in use. Also important is to make sure that the seal along the damper is tight. Because it's directly above the fire, the damper can become warped after long use. Dampers that sit on top of the firebox can be found on the Internet for as little as $80 and dampers that sit on top of the chimney start at about $150.

If you don't plan to use the fireplace, the U.S. Department of Energy suggests putting an old pillow or a seat cushion in a plastic bag and stuffing it in the flue -- with a long string to remind you it's there -- before closing the damper.

When a fire is burning, it can have the opposite of the intended effect by pulling hot air out of the house. To cut down on heat loss, the energy department recommends opening the nearest window about one inch, closing doors leading to the room, and lowering the thermostat to between 50 and 55 degrees.

In addition, having a solid set of glass doors for the front of the fireplace is important. These can stop heat from escaping when the fire is burning down and the damper is too hot to close. The best glass doors lock tight against the fireplace opening and have some insulation behind the frame and next to the brick, said Leslie Wheeler, director of communication for the Hearth, Patio and Barbeque Association in Arlington, Va.

"A good set of doors can cut your heat loss by about 50 percent," agrees Davis with Homeclick.com.

For those looking to make their fireplaces work as heat sources, they need to look for appliances, said Wheeler. The two most efficient heating options are fireplace inserts and stoves.

Fireplace inserts are essentially metal boxes. The units slide into the fireplace and are airtight, slowing the amount of air that comes into the fire. The fire heats the air in the box, then transfers it into the house. The inserts are vented out through the chimney. They feature glass doors that allow fire watchers to see what's burning and there are wood, gas or pellet-burning models. Most include a blower that regulates the amount of air that is taken in.

A wood-burning insert can make a fireplace 65 percent to 75 percent efficient, said Davis. Prices on inserts range from $900 to $2,400, depending on size and features, with some having catalytic combusters that get more heat out of the burning fuel.

When it comes to stoves, consumers have several choices.

The least expensive are woodstoves. Starting around $1,500, a woodstove is inserted into the fireplace and vented through the chimney. The venting pipes can cost an additional $2,000 since they need to be able to handle the smoke and ash of the burning wood, said Davis. Higher-end woodstoves feature blowers to circulate the heat.

Woodstoves come in varying sizes and can throw off enough energy to heat a large area. But despite their efficiency, they require regular maintenance including providing firewood, keeping them loaded and burning, and cleaning out the ash.

And this year, not only is getting wood difficult, it's considerably more expensive. Tree companies say they have had to increase the cost of delivering wood because of increased gasoline prices. A cord of wood that cost less than $200 last year is now between $200 and $250. Flooded with calls, Timber Tree Service in Pawtucket stopped taking orders and started a waiting list, said Danielle Refino, the company's office manager. The company is booked for making deliveries through November.

"We've never run out of wood before, but . . ." said Refino.

There are also gas stoves, but in order to run one, a home must have gas service. And then there are pellet stoves, such as the ones the Bousquets purchased. Pellet stoves have seen a surge in popularity this year, said Mike Tavalone, owner of Franklin Fireplace in Franklin, Mass., which sold the Bousquets their stove. The pellets, which are pressed from sawdust and wood, look like rabbit food. Since they are manufactured, they burn more evenly and consistently than wood. Pellets come in 40-pound bags and are easy to store.

Plus, pellet stoves can be set on thermostats and can turn on and off on their own. They don't need to be cleaned out, and the homeowner doesn't have to store or lug in firewood.

"They are actually more money [than wood stoves] but a lot less work than firewood," said Tavalone. "Finding firewood and storing enough for a season is a real chore."

The drawback to the pellet stove is that it's powered by electricity. Electricity drops the pellets into the stove and keeps the fire unit lit. With no electricity, there's no heat from a pellet stove.

In addition, Tavalone said that not only are pellets back-ordered, but manufacturers are having trouble keeping up with the demand for stoves. Some recent customers won't get their stoves until January, he said.

The Bousquets ran into the pellet problem last week. Although they ordered a ton of pellets in September, they didn't arrive with the stove. Luckily for the Bousquets, the day the stove was installed the temperature outside was 70 degrees.

If you're thinking about buying a fire appliance, the safest option is professional installation. And if you use your fireplace regularly, install a carbon monoxide detector.

For more information on fireplace safety and efficiency options check out:

The U.S. Department of Energey at www.eere.energy.gov

The Chimney Safety Institute of America at www.csia.org

The Hearth, Patio and Barbeque Association at www.hpba.org

Staff writer Andrea L. Stape can be e-mailed at astape [at] projo.com

TAKE A MULTIMEDIA LOOK at how to get more out of your fireplace, and browse previous installments of the weekly series, Bracing for Winter, at:

http://projo.com/bracingforwinter