What is this slot in my fireplace?

[Murphy101]

It is not the fire pit, or a blower (I wish!), or the gas line.  It is by default of crappy design, full of ash I can’t remove. 
picture without cover and precleaning. Picture after cleaning bc well. I cleaned it today. 
 

 

[itsheresomewhere]

It is hard to see but it could be an old ash door.  A complete pain to clean out here and my fireplace guy says most are.  They rust away over time and have to replaced.  I don’t use it as I clean the ashes out. 

Edited June 23, 2021 by itsheresomewhere

[plansrme]

Is it possible that the outlet for an ash chute has been covered over outside with new siding? My parents had one of these in their house that was built in 1972'ish. Theoretically, ashes fall or are scraped through the cute, and you clean them out via a little door that is outside, near ground level, right behind the fireplace. If the door were still there, you would know, but it would be easy to cover it in a renovation. I don't think they ever used it because, really--what is so hard about scooping ashes out of a fireplace and disposing of them?

[Murphy101]

Nope. Not the ash pit. That’s a huge missing brick opening in the bottom back below the grate. 

[Junie]

I don't know what it is, but I think you're supposed to use it to hide some valuable trinket, like jade earrings or something.  Or maybe a brass key to an old trunk that's hidden in your attic.  I also think that I read too many Nancy Drew books as a child.

[Murphy101]

2 hours ago, Junie said:

I don't know what it is, but I think you're supposed to use it to hide some valuable trinket, like jade earrings or something.  Or maybe a brass key to an old trunk that's hidden in your attic.  I also think that I read too many Nancy Drew books as a child.

Right?!You have no idea how hard I have tried to clean that dang thing out the last 15 years just to see what’s in it. When I pay to have the ducts and chimney cleaned, I wait with baited breath for the guys to clean that thing out and tell me where it leads and what all was in it. Alas. All of them say they don’t know what it is and aren’t going to try cleaning it out for me - even for more $. 

I did have a few of baby skinks crawl out of it when I was brushing out what I can reach on the surface. And one small snake was in the ash pit when I cleaned it out. So it wasn’t all disappointingly boring. 

[lewelma]

2 hours ago, Junie said:

I don't know what it is, but I think you're supposed to use it to hide some valuable trinket, like jade earrings or something.  Or maybe a brass key to an old trunk that's hidden in your attic.  I also think that I read too many Nancy Drew books as a child.

25 years ago we had a friend who was moving who had a 2 pound bag of pot. He knew he couldn't transport it across state lines, so asked if we wanted it. We didn't smoke, but it was just so funny to get it that we said yes.  But then later that year when we moved to NZ, we had the same problem. What to do with it!?!?! We had a nonworking fireplace in our rented apartment that we kept candles in. The chimney was blocked off, but the flue still opened, so we put the big bag of pot up the flue.  We figured someone, someday, would be very surprised. I doubt, however, that Nancy Drew would use that in one of her stories!

Edited June 23, 2021 by lewelma

[KungFuPanda]

Oh man.  This is gonna bug me.  I have no idea what that is.

[KungFuPanda]

Dh says they used to have a Heatilator fireplace.  It involves additional vents that would circulate warm air from the fire.  Maybe you had this at one point and they renovated the fireplace without removing the plate? The link above is one like Dh used to have, but this one looks more like your set up because of that vent at the bottom near the hearth.  Are there any vents higher up on the fireplace?  Or could it have been refaced and covered?

Edited June 24, 2021 by KungFuPanda

[Murphy101]

On 6/24/2021 at 3:26 PM, KungFuPanda said:

Dh says they used to have a Heatilator fireplace.  It involves additional vents that would circulate warm air from the fire.  Maybe you had this at one point and they renovated the fireplace without removing the plate? The link above is one like Dh used to have, but this one looks more like your set up because of that vent at the bottom near the hearth.  Are there any vents higher up on the fireplace?  Or could it have been refaced and covered?

Nope.

I will never own a “custom” home again if I can avoid it. It was a one owner before us and what I suspect happened what she constantly changed her mind in the contractors and they just shrugged, covered up and moved on.  So for example, we had that drywall box area above our kitchen cabinets and a dropped ceiling with tube lights that was so popular in the 80s. So we update the kitchen a bit with flush ceiling LED can lights. And that meant removing all that above the cabinets and stuff. When we removed the boxed in drywall we found THREE hood vent set ups.  Ugh. Any of them would have been a better placement for my cooktop that where it is too. LOL.  Another example is my bathroom. I suspect they started out wanting a sunken whirl tub. And when they changed their mind the contractor just put the regular tub in the ground anyways. So you have to step over the 6 inch upper tub edge and down a foot (that also slopes!) to get in my tub/shower. My husband and I call it contractor murderous vengeance bc it’s just a matter of time until we mortally injure ourselves getting in or out of it.

So. What I’m thinking is that at some point this slot was made with the intention of it being an intake vent for a blower system. But alas. She changed her mind again and they just decided to hell with it and just stopped there.  Which is a darn shame because I use the heck out of my fireplace in winter and a blower would be greatly appreciated. Or it’s a portal to another world. Who knows. But I sure do wanna know!!

[lewelma]

My dh said that there used to be slits of that shape and in that location that just allowed for air to be pulled passively from outside. 

[Murphy101]

43 minutes ago, lewelma said:

My dh said that there used to be slits of that shape and in that location that just allowed for air to be pulled passively from outside. 

Outside from where? If it ever connected outside, I can not find anything on the outside of the house for it. If it ever connected outside the fireplace on the inside of the house, I cannot find where to. And there’s no way to have any kind of screen for it without it being inside with the fire. So. 
🤷‍♀️

[lewelma]

1 minute ago, Murphy101 said:

Outside from where? If it ever connected outside, I can not find anything on the outside of the house for it. If it ever connected outside the fireplace on the inside of the house, I cannot find where to. And there’s no way to have any kind of screen for it without it being inside with the fire. So. 
🤷‍♀️

My dh found a diagram online. I'll try to post the link.

[lewelma]

So my dh's house as a kid was 1950s or 1960s. It had a gas pipe where yours is and a small key slot in the shag carpet that was virtually impossible to find. You would take the key, turn on the gas, chuck the log above the gas pipe, light a long match, light the gas, wait for the log to catch fire, and then turn off the gas with the key in the carpet.  Because their family room was designed with no door allowed (a large arch), they didn't need the slot to feed in fresh air. But if you have a room with a closed door, the gas would use up the O2 in the room, so the slot would simply pull air from the basement or another room. He thinks the slot could lead to some small gap somewhere and it didn't need to be outside and probably wouldn't be because who wants a hole leading outside? Air from the basement or another room would be fine.

This is dh's description of what he sees in this diagram. It is from 1993, so not the same exact design as yours or his from childhood.

The photo looks like it had:

• Natural Gas ignition system (generally a valve in the floor that turns on the gas -- you light the gas and the flames light up the logs -- no tinder required!!)
• Ash Pit -- which often falls between concrete block walls and has a hatch (in the basement?) that can be used to clean out if it gets too full.
• Air intake damper -- which is often at the front of the fire on the base, to allow external air to flow in so as not to suck out the oxygen from the room. This is often drawn from the basement or even externally.

https://www.gobrick.com/docs/default-source/read-research-documents/technicalnotes/19-residential-fireplace-design.pdf?sfvrsn=0

Perhaps if the gas option became no longer usable (gas pipes do die, tell me how I know!), they simply plugged up the hole and painted over it.

 

Edited June 26, 2021 by lewelma

[Murphy101]

11 hours ago, lewelma said:

So my dh's house as a kid was 1950s or 1960s. It had a gas pipe where yours is and a small key slot in the shag carpet that was virtually impossible to find. You would take the key, turn on the gas, chuck the log above the gas pipe, light a long match, light the gas, wait for the log to catch fire, and then turn off the gas with the key in the carpet.  Because their family room was designed with no door allowed (a large arch), they didn't need the slot to feed in fresh air. But if you have a room with a closed door, the gas would use up the O2 in the room, so the slot would simply pull air from the basement or another room. He thinks the slot could lead to some small gap somewhere and it didn't need to be outside and probably wouldn't be because who wants a hole leading outside? Air from the basement or another room would be fine.

This is dh's description of what he sees in this diagram. It is from 1993, so not the same exact design as yours or his from childhood.

The photo looks like it had:

• Natural Gas ignition system (generally a valve in the floor that turns on the gas -- you light the gas and the flames light up the logs -- no tinder required!!)
• Ash Pit -- which often falls between concrete block walls and has a hatch (in the basement?) that can be used to clean out if it gets too full.
• Air intake damper -- which is often at the front of the fire on the base, to allow external air to flow in so as not to suck out the oxygen from the room. This is often drawn from the basement or even externally.

https://www.gobrick.com/docs/default-source/read-research-documents/technicalnotes/19-residential-fireplace-design.pdf?sfvrsn=0

Perhaps if the gas option became no longer usable (gas pipes do die, tell me how I know!), they simply plugged up the hole and painted over it.

 

I know the gas pipe is easily replaceable because I already did it once. It’s just a cast iron pipe with holes that screws on to the gas valve. The key is in the side of the fireplace between the stones.  

This room is like an amphitheater. It doesn’t have any doors at all and the only walls at the one the fireplace is one (next to the back door) and the wall to the right (which has door to my bedroom, directly across from the fireplace is a partial wall(with library on other side) and front entry. Further up the wall is an open banister to the upstairs hallway. And the area to the left is open to the dining room and kitchen. And it has a cathedral ceiling. There is no basement.  As I’m in process of cleaning the stones to do lime washing - there are zero crevices or opening that I can find.  So like I said. They may have started with that intent - but I suspect they either realized that was not necessary or someone changed plans and they just stopped it without removing or filling in. 

[Wildcat]

I have no idea, but maybe ask on Reddit? Their "what is this thing" forum is excellent at this kind of stuff. 

https://www.reddit.com/r/whatisthisthing/