Chimney Care Company's Blog

How to Start a Fire with Less Smoke

One of my favorite things about the cooler months of the year is spending time next to a warm, cozy fire. The crackling wood and radiant heat just soothe my innards like nothing else ever has. Question: What’s more romantic that snuggling up with your significant other in front of a glowing fire? Rhetorical question, Keefer. Nothing is more romantic than that! Question: What’s more relaxing than coming home from a long day at the office, sitting in your favorite chair, and unwinding next to a glowing fire? Come on Keefer, that’s another rhetorical question. Nothing is more relaxing than that! For those of you who have trouble starting a fire in your fireplace without also filling your entire house with wood smoke or those of you who want a few fire starting pointers, this blog’s for you.

Fireplaces that smoke are simply, for whatever reason, not drawing the smoke up the chimney. There are a lot of possible culprits when this happens. There could be a blockage; perhaps a bird has decided to build a nest and make your chimney home. There could be a large tree in your yard that grows over your chimney and impedes the airflow. Perhaps the opening of your fireplace is simply too large for the size of your flue, which can result in smoke taking the path of least resistance and back puffing into your living space. The issue could also be that there is a downdraft caused by air movement off of your roof. If you’re making home improvements and add storm windows on your house to make it more air tight, this could result in your fireplace being unable to get enough combustion air, which would result in the smoke spilling back into your house. Needless to say, the causes of the smoke are more numerous than you may have originally realized.

Before starting a fire in your fireplace, you’ll first want to ensure that your damper is open; a fireplace requires a large amount of air after all. Once this is done, you’ll want to ignite a fire-starter brick, some newspaper, or dry kindling in the center of your fireplace grate. This will ensure that the hot air begins funneling its way up the chimney and not back into your house. Before adding any wood, it is important to remember to never overload your firebox, as this will not allow the requisite amount of combustion air to flow around the wood.

Next, place one log, lengthwise, behind the starter and another one in front of it. When those two pieces of wood catch fire, place a log diagonally across them. This setup will help to encourage combustion air to flow around all three logs, which is critical for an even burn. To maintain proper airflow, regularly remove ashes from your fireplace into a metal container with a cover; many homeowners will keep these containers outdoors, which is a great idea since it removes a potential fire hazard from the home. This is also similar to a top down burn, where the starter kindeling is at the top of the logs, allowing the wood to burn from the top down more efficiently and bringing more fire heat into the room.

I once heard someone compare fireplaces to young children, and this comparison has stuck with me ever since: “Fireplaces are like children. They need to be watched at all times to make sure they’re doing what you want them to do.” I like to think he was pretty accurate with that comparison. Properly arranging the wood in your fireplace and providing it with enough space for air to flow around the logs is critical to allowing you to get the most out of your fire. By following a few simple steps, you, too, can have a roaring fire in your fireplace this heating season.

If you follow these steps and still have issues with smoke in your home when starting a fire, call or contact the experts here at Chimney Care Company in Cincinnati and we can help you with your chimney and fireplace smoke issues.

To Remove or Not Remove Ash

Any homeowner with a wood stove or fireplace is faced with the problem of ash removal. If you’re burning wood, you’re going to have to deal with ash. The actual amount of ash that’s generated will be determined by the type of wood you burn (hardwood or softwood) and the temperature at which your fires are burning. Informed homeowners look forward to this ash, as it can be used as a lawn and garden fertilizer to provide vital nutrients and reduce acidity. It can also be used on compost piles to maintain neutral acidity levels as well as on icy driveways and sidewalks to provide much-needed traction. However, don’t be too hasty with your ash removal, as a little bit is actually a good thing!

Wood Fire Maintenance for Heating Efficiency

The primary objective in maintaining wood fires is to prevent the wood from smoldering because any smoke that passes out of the firebox has the potential to condense as creosote in the chimney and/or be emitted outdoors as air pollution. Believe it or not, there will be little to no visible smoke from your chimney if your wood is burning with bright, active flames. A 1-2” layer of ash and coal at the bottom of your fireplace or wood stove can actually assist with the combustion process, thereby enabling your fire to burn with a much higher intensity. If the ashes are cleaned out too soon, however, you may find that it’s more difficult to build a new fire because you must heat up all of the brick in the firebox to saturation before the fire is able to really take off.

How to Deal with Wood Ashes

Try to remove a small amount of ash frequently. During the coldest part of the heating season, it may be appropriate to remove a small amount of ash each morning before the new fire is kindled to make raking coals and kindling loads throughout the day more convenient. It is important to remember that ashes often contain live coals, which can stay hot and give off carbon monoxide for days. The best practice, whenever possible, is to leave live coals in the fireplace or wood stove to assist with the kindling of a subsequent wood load. When rekindling from coals, it is best to rake the coals towards the air inlet, place the new wood behind the coals, and always place the smallest, driest piece of firewood directly on the coals to act as the ignition source for the rest of the new wood. This small piece of wood should begin flaming almost immediately and will ignite the larger pieces as it burns.

The End of the Heating System Is Different

When the weather starts warming up, many homeowners begin shifting their sights to doing things outdoors and forget all about their fireplace and/or wood stove. This can prove detrimental to both. Wood ashes actually have the potential to draw moisture that can wreak havoc on the metal components and masonry. Ash is extremely acidic and, when combined with moisture, can be extremely destructive. It is best to remove all ashes from your fireplace and stove at the end of the heating season to prevent this from happening.

Here at Chimney Care Company, we’ve been sweeping and cleaning chimneys for 25 years, and we’ve seen the difference that an annual sweep can make in the lifetime and enjoyment of the chimney and fireplace. Don’t wait until you’re experiencing problems with your chimney system—click here to schedule your sweeping and inspection today! We guarantee that our sweeps will get the job done right the first time! When you have your chimney inspected by our trained and experienced crews, you can be sure that is a chimney service you don’t have to worry about anymore.