The Rolling Hills Estates air and your fireplace inspection
Trees and hillside cuts break the breeze into gusts that press down on a short chimney at random moments. Damp winter nights keep the masonry cold, so the first few minutes of a fire tend to roll smoke out the top of the opening. Warming the flue with a lit roll of newspaper usually helps. On a typical Ramsey visit that means smoke pencil held at the damper throat, opening size compared to flue area, and firebox joints probed for gaps, with the order set by what the smoke test shows rather than a fixed list.
