Where Can I Hang My Holiday Stockings Without A Chimney?

T'was the night before Christmas and all through the house not a creature was stirring. Not even a mouse. The stockings were hung from the chimney with.....wait a minute....chimney?!??! What chimney? "I live in an apartment without a chimney. Where the heck do hang my stockings?"

If I had a nickel for every time that I have heard this question, I'd be loaded. As Apartmentites, many of us do not have chimneys to hang our stockings from with care over the holiday, so I have had to come up with different ideas over the years to substitute.

If you are looking for an alternative place to hang up your stockings, try some of these:

Entertainment Center- Tacking them around your entertainment center is a great idea if you have one. You can then put a continuous looping fireplace DVD on and sit around the "fire" with the stockings hanging. Just be careful not to hang the toes in the way of your view of the television.

A Window or your front Door- Santa always came in through the chimney, right? So with no chimney, how's he going to get in? Obviously...he's going to come in through a door or a window, so try hanging your stockings around your front door (on the inside of course) or your window as your substitute for the chimney. If you are tall, make sure to duck, so you avoid hitting your head on the stocking every time you walk through the door. If you hang it on your window, its a little way of letting everyone know that you are getting into the festive spirit!

Bathroom mirror- This is a little unconventional, but a really cool alternative to the chimney idea. Tack up your stockings around your bathroom mirror. They will be a fun reminder that it's the holiday season every morning when you're getting ready.

Wherever you hang your stockings, make sure that you don't hang them up too high because Santa's little helpers might have trouble reaching them.

If your shopping isn't finished, I'd suggest you getting it done soon. It can be a headache as it gets closer to Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

For more information on apartment living or to find an apartment, check out ApartmentHomeLiving.com

Jeff's just a regular guy with a funny goatee that really enjoys people and life. On top of that he is a bit of an expert on apartments, living in them, and getting the most out of the apartment living lifestyle.

As a Managing Partner of Apartment Home Living, Jeff wants to help you find the right apartment by getting to know you. Not only where you want to live & what you want to pay, but what you like. This way, we can help you find an apartment that fits your personality, not just your budget.

At AHL Apartmentites have a platform to share their own stories, get great info & tips on apartment living, read Jeff's entertaining blogs/stories, find Answers to a wide array of apartment related questions, and have a ton of fun sharing their love of apartment living with others. Don't forget to go and set up your own MyPlace page to really get the full Apartmentite experience!

How to Avoid Chimney Fires

A chimney is a stack of bricks and mortar so common sense dictates that it shouldn't ever catch fire. However there are more than 25,000 chimney fires in the USA each year. These fires happen because a fire produces soot which clings to the brickwork and builds up in layers. These sooty layers of carbon can ignite and cause a major house fire. The results can of course be tragic.

The simplest way to avoid a house fire is to clean your chimney. A sweep with a proper chimney brush at least once a year is absolutely necessary.

There are other ways to help minimise carbon build up too. The first is to ensure you only burn hardwoods rather than softwoods. These have too much oily tar in them which easily sticks to the bricks and is less easily removable by brushing.

Secondly avoid wet wood. This lowers the temperature of your fire. The hotter the fire, the more likely that sooty particulates will be whooshed straight up the chimney and out into the air without being able to settle on the chimney interior. Because a hot fireplace and flue is good for avoiding chimney fires, contractors these days will often inset a new insulated flue when installing a woodstove to keep the flue hot and thereby discourage carbon build up.

Finally you should never burn plastics or any man made materials other than those expressly designed for use in a fireplace. If you keep these tips in mind you can be assured of a safe fireplace for many years to come.

Find out more about wood burning stoves and all about heating your home the natural way.

Chimney Problems - Keeping It Clean

In a recent article, the dangers of an unclean chimney were the main issue. Clogged chimneys start fires and cause venting problems throughout the house. If you own a traditional fireplace, here's what you are going to have to do.

Gather your brooms, drop cloth and vacuum. You'll also want goggles and a suit for the job. You'll want to put the drop cloth down to make clean up easier when you are done. That's a trick of the old chimney sweep experts they learned at the turn of the century when it was becoming more customary to walk into a house and find a carpet rather than a wood floor. The drop cloth should be several feet wide and long so that it will be sure to catch all the soot that drops.

Sweeping the chimney isn't any harder than it sounds. Stick your broom up into the chimney and go to town. You should have different sized brooms for different locations. A small duster can handle the easy to reach areas. A broom with a long handle will reach the farther areas. Sweep until you can see through to light. Then, shine a flashlight into the chimney to look around for creosote and soot. You will also want to get on the roof to look down through your chimney.

It's like cleaning a rifle. You'll have to make several runs until you can see that you have cleaned everything. Cleaning up several times throughout the process helps you see if you are getting any closer to finishing. Simply vacuum as much soot from the drop cloth as possible so that when you make another pass at the chimney, you can see if anything is still coming out.

But, there are carcinogenic materials that you need to be aware of when you are cleaning your chimney. So, the best thing to do is call a chimney sweep expert who is going to come with all the right equipment. They know what they are looking for when they clean. They know how to detain the mess so that your house comes out spotless. And they know the dangers involved. But, they come with a price and chimney sweeping should be done at a regular basis.

But, what if you could have a fireplace without all that hassle? A ventless gel fireplace doesn't need a chimney. It's ventless. It produces a water vapor instead of soot. It burns like a candle, only it puts out some major heat. And it looks just like a fireplace without all the hassle. Most traditional fireplaces run between $5000 and $7500 to install. A ventless gel goes as low as $300 to have the complete fireplace experience.

Fireplaces are quite an expense. The chimney is just another part of the overall hassle you will have to endure to enjoy your fireplace experience. But, a ventless gel takes all the objections away. Cost effective, hassle free fireplace experience. You'll notice the difference right away!

Jessica Brylan is a home improvement expert. She loves remodeling homes. She has even built a few. In all her work, she has split off into interior design every once in awhile. But, actual construction is her first love. She knows enough to get by with the big guys.