It’s that time of year once the weather melts and temperatures in many nations fall. If you love the occasional cozy fire on your wood-burning fireplace, remember that heating equipment is among the primary causes of house fires during the winter season. What’s more, as stated by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), over a third of home heating fires in the U.S. involve fireplaces and chimneys. Below are a few crucial fireplace safety tips which might help prevent smoke or fire-related injury in your house during those cold months.
Fireplace Safety Tips
- Ahead of the heating system, be certain that you hire a professional chimney sweep to inspect and remove creosote or other obstacles, for example, animal planters, by the chimney.
- Permit only a qualified professional to set up chimney connectors and chimneys on your residence. Click here to find out more.
- Inspect your chimney cap frequently. If it’s damaged, fix or replace it. If your chimney does not have a cap on top, have an installed fitted using wire-mesh sides to prevent debris or animals from getting into the chimney.
- Keep all flammable objects, like papers, books, holiday decorations, and furniture, at least 2 feet from the fireplace.
- Be certain there’s a fire extinguisher in the room.
- Use only dry, seasoned wood, cut to the appropriate length.
- Have a mesh metal screen or glass fireplace doors set up to prevent embers from shooting from the fireplace.
- Utilize fireplace tools to keep the fire.
- Supervise children whenever the fireplace is being used. Remind them to keep away from the flame.
- Keep pets at a safe distance from the flame, too.
- Always oversee the flame rather than leave it burning when going to sleep or leaving the house.
- Close the damper just once the embers have cooled off.
- Install and maintain smoke alarms and carbon monoxide alarms (CO) outside every sleeping area and also on each level of the house. For the best security, interconnect the CO alerts, so that if one seems, they do.
When beginning a flame:
- Eliminate the ash from the preceding flame but allow them to cool for many hours prior to disposing of them. Constructing a flame in addition to the ash is going to lead to more smoke since it reduces the air distribution to timber.
- Place the ashes into a metal container with a tight lid. Shop it out, at least 10 feet away in the house and other buildings. Don’t dump ashes in mountainous areas or on yards, at least till they have fully cooled.
- Open the damper; you might need to look into the chimney using a badge or mirror to confirm it is open.
- Place crumpled newspaper onto the grate and then cover it using kindling or a different fire-starter (however don’t use caustic liquids to begin your flame!) Insert the firewood when the kindling is burning brightly. After that, shut the flame display.
- Do not overload the fireplace; a massive fire creates more smoke and can harm your chimney.
- Never burn plastic, garbage, or other substances which might be hazardous.
For skilled fire damage cleaning solutions, contact the PuroClean pros!
Despite the suitable fireplace security measures in place, accidents may still occur. As smoke may seriously damage a house, it’s vital to find the home remediated as soon as possible. The more soot and smoke stays on a surfacer, the more harm it can do. Our fire damage restoration technicians utilize the most recent equipment and methods to eliminate soot and deodorize your home following fire harm, fast and correctly. For skilled fire damage Jupitercleaning solutions, contact your regional PuroClean office.
