Our Fireplace Filled the Living Room With Smoke Until I Checked One Thing

We were twenty minutes into movie night when the first wisp of smoke curled out from the fireplace. I figured it was just a draft issue—maybe a gust of wind outside.

Then it wasn’t a wisp anymore.

Within two minutes, gray smoke was pouring into the living room. My sister grabbed the kids while I frantically opened windows. The smoke alarm started screaming.

Here’s what made it so confusing: this fireplace had worked perfectly fine the last time we used it, back in early spring. We’d had fires all winter without a single problem.

Now our entire living room looked like a barbecue pit.

I was standing on the front porch, airing out, when our neighbor Tom walked over. He’s the guy who’s lived on this street for thirty years and seems to know everything about old houses.

He looked at the smoke still drifting out the front door and asked me one question.

I stared at him blankly. But the moment I went inside to check, everything made sense.