First off, let me thank anyone who spends their time addressing my question. I really appreciate it.
We moved into our home a few years back. The previous owners never had a single fire in the fireplace. However, after the first winter, we had a really bad problem with a draft coming through the front of the fireplace. A draft so bad that when the temperature was 5 degrees one time, we could not keep the living room warm. This spring I contacted a construction company that said they specialized in fireplaces. The took of the back of the chimney soffit and discovered that their was no insulation in the bottom of the soffit underneath the fireplace. So the cavity would fill up with cold air and then run right into the house. Their solution was to pack insulation in the cavity underneath. The fireplace is a Heatilator EC-36. Underneath the fireplace on the right hand side is a junction box knockout. The panel had been removed and their was an electrical wire running through it. After looking at it, the insulation is packed up right behind that knockout. This concerned me that this could be a fire hazard.I contacted the people that put the insulation there and they said it shouldn't be a problem. However, I would like to get a second opinion. I attached a picture of what I'm talking about. I took the front of the fireplace off and took a picture. Any information from the forum would be greatly appreciated. Thanks,
We moved into our home a few years back. The previous owners never had a single fire in the fireplace. However, after the first winter, we had a really bad problem with a draft coming through the front of the fireplace. A draft so bad that when the temperature was 5 degrees one time, we could not keep the living room warm. This spring I contacted a construction company that said they specialized in fireplaces. The took of the back of the chimney soffit and discovered that their was no insulation in the bottom of the soffit underneath the fireplace. So the cavity would fill up with cold air and then run right into the house. Their solution was to pack insulation in the cavity underneath. The fireplace is a Heatilator EC-36. Underneath the fireplace on the right hand side is a junction box knockout. The panel had been removed and their was an electrical wire running through it. After looking at it, the insulation is packed up right behind that knockout. This concerned me that this could be a fire hazard.I contacted the people that put the insulation there and they said it shouldn't be a problem. However, I would like to get a second opinion. I attached a picture of what I'm talking about. I took the front of the fireplace off and took a picture. Any information from the forum would be greatly appreciated. Thanks,
