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Posted on April 1, 2006 by Deon Melchior | Posted under Home Improvement
Cleaning your wood-burning fireplace or stove
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In the short-term, it isn't terribly crucial to clean your fireplace or stove out. However, over a period of a few months you would be surprised at how fast ashes can build up in the bed of a wood-burning fireplace or a woodstove. These can become very messy if left untended to, and they can also create less room to build a fire, so it is important that these ashes be kept to a minimum in order to promote the continued beauty and the optimal operation of your wood-burning fireplace or your woodstove. What is the best and safest way to clean the stove? First of all, you are going to have to set aside a good chunk of time, since this can get messy and requires a little preparation beforehand. You will likely want to lay down a small drop cloth around the stove, and be sure to keep small children and pets out of the room, since the last thing you need are inquisitive noses and/or hands poked into a bucket of ashes. You will end up with a cloudy, sooty mess! Corral pets in a separate room and ask your significant other to mind small children, or wait until nap time, or even arrange for a friend or relative to baby-sit. This is something you don't want interrupted! You will have to make sure not to use your stove or fireplace at least twenty-four hours before you plan to clean it, since you want to be sure the ashes have cooled off from the last fire. Do not attempt to hasten the process by dousing them with water, as this will make the ashes wet and even harder to clean. Ashes can be removed into a metal or cardboard container by use of a shovel, or you can use a special vacuum meant for the task of removing ashes to extract them from the fireplace or woodstove. Many municipalities will collect cold ashes, but may have special regulations for the container they are placed in. Be sure to check up on this before attempting to put them by the road. Once the ashes are gone, you can use a special wire brush to clean out the damper and the lower part of the chimney. You will need another, stiff-bristled brush to clean the bed of the fireplace itself. In addition, you will want to research the various cleaning fluids available before putting any of them into use. As some of them are more toxic than others and require more stringent precautions in the form of masks and ventilation before use. You will then want to let the fireplace or woodstove dry out thoroughly before attempting to light another fire. Yuck! This sounds far too messy for me- are there people who will do this for me? Certainly there are many services available that will either include or focus on the cleaning of your stove. Consult the yellow pages and ask about charges for regular cleaning; you may find that it is an entirely economical alternative to doing the task yourself (plus, think what you could save on babysitting charges!) You can use the search engine on the Internet also to find cleaning services in your area. Just go to the search engine, type in keywords related to your needs and you will find tons of links. The links will offer you many resources and the ability to type in your area code to find cleaning services in your area. Compare the costs! About The Author: Deon Melchior is the Editor and Publisher of Article Click. For more FREE articles for your ezine and websites visit - www.articleclick.com |
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