Your Fireplace                            

Picture this:  A crackling fire in the fire place on a cold winter’s night.  Suddenly there is a roar from above and smoke begins to leak into your family room.  The chimney is on fire.  Fireplaces have and continue to be the source of warmth and comfort...they are also the source of many a house fire.  The following tips should help you avoid a visit from your local Fire Department.

 --Have your fireplace properly installed by a qualified installer or mason (or if you do it yourself, follow the instructions implicitly).  Any wood chase (the area containing the fireplace and chimney in many homes) should have had taped sheetrock installed on the walls to minimize any chance of fire getting inside the home.

--Have the chimney cleaned at least annually, perhaps more often if you burn a lot of wood.  Contact a local chimney sweep unless you can safely clean it yourself (needs to be done from above).  Creosote can build up in the chimney and block the exhaust or catch fire.

--Check to see that the brickwork is not cracked (the sweep should do this for you).  Cracks permit heat and possibly embers to escape the fire box, possibly resulting in a fire outside the fireplace.

--Assure the flu is open when burning (smoke fills the house when it is closed)

--Burn only clean dry hardwood...and burn only when someone is present.

--Use glass doors or a screen to prevent sparks from getting out of the firebox and igniting the room’s contents.

--Keep flammables away from the firebox opening.

--Dispose of cold ashes by removing or using an ash pit.  Be sure not to put hot coals and other burning material in the ash pit (we have already had CO levels set off the alarm of an ash pit with burning wood).

--Finally...many fireplaces are there ONLY for show and are NOT intended to replace your home furnace.  Repeatedly burning hot fires in an attempt to heat your home may result in a fire outside the inserted fire box.  Check with your owner’s manual or the installer for more information.

 

 Cookbook for Sale

The Spring Grove Firefighters' Association Cookbook is hot off the presses and available for purchase.  With over 150 recipes from some of the finest chefs in Spring Grove, this book is a steal at the low price of $15.

Contact Michelle Davis at the station (815)675-2450 or email her at MDavis @springgrovefire.com if you are interested in purchasing a cookbook.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sunday March 14th, 2010