Maintenance a must for constantly running fireplaces on Zelienople manor
ZELIENOPLE — The three working fireplaces at Benvenue Manor take constant maintenance. But according to Jesse Hogan, the work is worth it.
Homeowner Hogan constantly gathers wood from the family farm to chop for burning, and he sets aside at least three afternoons per year to climb up on the roof and clean the two chimneys that release the smoke.
All that work creates an ambience in the 19th century house, where the three fireplaces create the only source of heat over the winter, Hogan said.
“It's so cool to have the fireplaces in the house, it’s kind of a medieval feeling in the house,” Hogan said. “I cut every piece that goes through. We cut wood pretty much year round. I don't mind the work — it's worth it when there's fires going.”
Hogan said the house has been owned by his family since the 1960s, when his grandfather bought it, but his great-great-grandmother worked for one of the previous owners of the house. It was built, Hogan said, by a German baron, George Mueller, in the early-1800s.
After a lifetime of dreaming of living in the house and keeping the three fireplaces going, Hogan bought the house about three years ago, and now lives there with his wife and three children. The house originally had six fireplaces, but after two centuries, two wood burners remain on the main floor, and one in the basement. The home also has a pellet stove, which also expels smoke through one of the chimneys.
The house itself resembles European architecture, because one side looks like a castle, and is complete with a cistern on its roof made of stone, built in the 1800s to retain water. The house also has six dormer windows, which Hogan said add to the unique look.
The fireplaces on the inside are also varied, with one being built with marble and the others made of stone. While keeping the fires lit is a constant job, Hogan said cleaning the fireplaces and the chimneys is also a must, to prevent the fires from spreading into the house.
“The living room creates a lot of soot and ash. Every few weeks I'll take the coals out, clean them out and put the coals back in. It's a bit of work and we've got it down to a science,” Hogan said. “The soapstone fireplace is at least 300 pounds, it's very heavy to move but I have to get back in behind it. It makes me feel better to know the chimneys are clean, and very little chance of fire.”
Hogan said the house doesn’t have central air, so the fireplaces are continually running throughout the winter to warm the house. While cleaning the chimneys can be difficult, Hogan said he usually only does it three times per year.
“The house is very tall and the chimneys are a little taller, so I have to go out through my son's window dormer. It's very high, and I think I have to have 36 feet of chimney cleaning pole, and it doesn't reach all the way into the bottom,” Hogan said. “I do it about three times a year. October, then usually right after the first of the year, I'll put the fires out, go back up and clean them. Then sometime in April or early May, I'll go up and run the brush through them again.”
