Fireplace Safety Guidelines

11/25/2020 (Permalink)

It is that time of year when the weather cools down and temperatures in most states drop. If you enjoy the occasional cozy fire in your wood-burning fireplace, keep in mind that heating equipment is one of the leading causes of home fires during the winter months. Furthermore, according to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), more than a third of home heating fires in the U.S. involve fireplaces and chimneys. Here are some critical fireplace safety tips that could help prevent a smoke or fire-related accident in your home during these cold months.

• Inspect your chimney cap regularly. If it’s damaged, repair or replace it. If your chimney doesn’t have a cap at the top, have one installed fitted with wire-mesh sides to prevent debris or animals from entering the chimney.
• Keep all flammable objects, such as newspapers, books, holiday decorations, and furniture, at least two feet away from the fireplace.
• Use only dry, seasoned wood, cut to the correct length.
• Have a mesh metal screen or glass fireplace doors installed to prevent embers from shooting out of the fireplace.
• Use fireplace tools to maintain the fire.
• Remove the ashes from the previous fire but let them cool for several hours before disposing of them. Building a fire on top of the ashes will result in more smoke, as it reduces the air supply to wood.

Even with all the proper fireplace safety measures in place, accidents can still happen. As smoke can severely damage a home, it’s essential to get the house remediated as soon as possible. The longer soot and smoke sits on a surfacer, the more damage it can do. Our fire damage restoration technicians use the latest equipment and techniques to remove soot and deodorize your house after fire damage, quickly and properly.