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Safety & Maintenance Tips for your Fireplace
By Anna Young
When you are sitting in front of a roaring fire on a cold winter’s eve, everything is just about perfect, until your roof catches on fire. Every winter, houses ignite due to poorly maintained or faulty fireplaces and chimneys. If you are going to burn wood in your fireplace, it is important to maintain it to keep your house safe. Regardless of whether you use your fireplace for ambiance or heat, you should be aware of the safety risks that operating a fireplace entails, so you can always make sure to operate your fireplace with no mishaps. Schedule Inspections Once a Year
Ideally you should have your chimney and fireplace inspected annually. A great time to schedule the inspection is right before you plan to start using it for the year; late summer or early fall is ideal. Generally you will have your fireplace cleaned at the same time, and the inspector will look at the chimney, the flue and the fireplace. You also want to make sure to trap any hot sparks that escape up the chimney in a mesh screen over the top of your chimney opening. This screen will also help to keep little critters from making a nest in your chimney during the warm months. Make sure to keep branches trimmed well away from your chimney and keep your roof and gutters free of debris. It just takes one stray spark to create a disaster. Keep the Hearth Clear of Combustibles
When you are in your home, you also want to use caution when you have a fire burning. Always cover an active fire in the fireplace with a mesh screen to contain stray sparks. If you have a glass door on your fireplace, it should be open when a fire is burning, however, the screen should be closed. Keep the hearth clear of anything that is flammable and make sure that furniture and carpeting are a safe distance away from the open flame. Best Fuel to Use
When you are burning a fire in your fireplace, use well-seasoned hardwood. You can use dried kindling or a fire starter log to ignite your fire. Never, ever use a flammable liquid like gasoline, lighter fluid or kerosene to start a fire in your home. You also want to avoid burning softwoods, because they burn at a slower pace, and they cause creosote to build up in your chimney faster than the hotter burning hardwoods. You fireplace is for burning wood not trash, so resist the temptation to throw paper or cardboard into your fireplace. Your fireplace is not a barbecue, so do not fill it with charcoal and try to cook on it. Charcoal emits dangerous levels of carbon monoxide that can cause physical harm to you and your family. It is safer to build a smaller fire because it will produce less smoke and burn out completely. Stack your wood on a metal grate in the center of the firebox, and always extinguish your fire when you are not attending it. |
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Having grown up burning wood, this is good information Anna.
Keep up the good work.
Nice image.
Best wishes.
Frederick
The copyright for this content entitled "Safety & Maintenance Tips for your Fireplace" has been specified by the contributor as:
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This content may not be copied, distributed or adapted by anyone under any circumstances.
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This intel was contributed by Anna Young
Anna Young
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May, 2012
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