Okay, not to monopolize the conversation, but back to beating a dead horse my chimney issues. Yes, opening a window solves the "problem", but when it lets in more cold than the fire makes heat, it sorta defeats the purpose of a fire. I've been told about venting, and you all are confirming this. Maybe I'm Googleing the wrong thing, but I can't find this answer on the internet. And yes, a vent is code around here these days, but my house turns 56 this year. It wasn't an issue when Mom and Dad bought the house new, but after 20 years or so he had blown in insulation installed and then replaced windows. It wasn't a big problem right after that, so if you had a fire upstairs, you really wouldn't notice unless you went into the basement. If you burned one all day, smoke would eventually reach upstairs, but Mom never did that. And the exact opposite would happen. You burn one in the basement, smoke would appear in the living room. The smoking would be considerably worse in either direction if you run the clothes dryer.
Oh, and TOTP Ma.