There are a lot of people who say that one of the best things to do during the winter is to snuggle in front of a warm fireplace. In order to be able to do so it is important to keep in mind certain safety measures. It is vital to maintain the fireplaces to be sure that you and your family are safe.
Step one
The first step to take in this direction is to have the entire fireplace and chimney cleaned by a professional. You don’t have to worry about the dust in your home, because the majority of the professionals are using high performance vacuums. In some of the cases these professionals also offer to inspect the different parts of the fireplace to find any areas that have been damaged and that need repairs.
Step two
The next step is to make sure that you will have enough fuel to keep the fireplace running. This means that you will need a supplier of firewood. In the majority of the cases it is enough to have one or two deliveries of wood. Also you could get the wood from the supermarket or from certain locations that offer the wood for free.
It isn’t a good idea to use the wood from trees that have been recently cut down because these woods still have a high level of moisture. This means that the wood won’t burn as it should, resulting in deposits of fume and dust in the chimney. There are some synthetic logs that you could also use, but be careful when using them because they could not burn evenly and they could release a higher level of carbon monoxide.
Safety
For sure you know that you need a fireplace guard or screen to make sure that the home is safe from the embers jumping out of the fireplace. In case there are some children in your home, you should ensure that there is a barrier and that they won’t get near the fire and prevent them from putting their hands on the hot screen.
Before the fire
Before you actually make fire in your home, you need to open the chimney flue. This way there will be oxygen to help the fire burn and also it will be possible for the smoke to get out of your home. Otherwise the smoky fume could fill your home.
