First of all, you need to make sure your fireplace is cleaned on a regular basis, especially if you use it frequently. You can purchase wood creosote logs to clean up the build up in the chimney at most hardware stores to help with this.
Make sure all flammable items are as far away from the fireplace or wood stove area as possible. Open the damper fully - if you try to burn with it closed, you'll end up with a bunch of smoke in your home and possible carbon monoxide poisoning!
Use dry hardwoods to burn. Oak, Maple, etc, are great woods that will burn long and warm if it's properly seasoned. Pine is a wood that you shouldn't burn unless it's an emergency (IE - the end of the world!) as it can add creosote build up very quickly. If you rarely use your fireplace, or mostly save it for emergency purposes, there are a host of manufactured logs you can find at your local hardware store, such as Duraflame logs, that are easy to store and easy to light.
To start the fire, use dry crumpled newspaper with thin pieces of wood as kindling. A bit of dryer lint can help start a slow fire, too, but be careful that you don't burn items you really shouldn't. Don't ever burn plastic or magazine pages.
NEVER leave a fire unattended! As tempting as it might be to leave a fire burning while you go to bed, this is incredibly dangerous.
To dispose of the ashes, use a metal shovel and move the ashes into a metal bucket. Ashes can still have hot coals in them for several days, so keep this bucket away from your home, and away from items that could catch on fire easily. A metal trash can with a lid is a good way to keep the ashes from flying away. Dump a pail of water on top of the ashes to stop any embers from from catching.
Later on, you can work these cold ashes into any flower or vegetable beds you have in your yard - the wood ash is a great fertilizer for the soil!
1 comment:
Good to know! We just started using our fireplace and have been totally clueless!
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