Keep the home FIRES BURNING

Autumn days are shorter and there is a distinct chill in the night air, indicating that winter is on the way. If you have a fireplace in your home, you are probably waiting for that first cold snap to appear so you can make the first fire of the winter season. However, before that, it’s important to inspect your fireplace and chimney and undertake some essential maintenance tasks.

Here are the answers from our experts to some of the commonly asked questions. What parts of my fireplace and chimney need to be inspected before the winter?

Experts at Megamaster say that before lighting the first fire of the season, inspect your fireplace and chimney.

• Look for any damage, obstructions, cracks or other abnormalities, and repair if found.

• A damper is a plate or valve that regulates the flow of air inside your chimney. Always ensure it is functioning as it should be before you light the first fire.

• Often, wood and gas fireplaces have gaskets fitted around their doors. Gasket material helps keep gas and smoke from entering your home and keeps excess oxygen from entering the fire-burning area. If your fireplace has a gasket, carefully inspect it to ensure it is intact. Replace the gasket if it is damaged.

Should we have our chimney swept?

Petrus van der Westhuizen from The Original Chimney Sweep advises that it is important to have your chimney swept at least once every 12 to 18 months. A good time to do this would be before you use your fireplace at the start of winter. The more frequently the fireplace is used, the more often it should be swept.

Sweeping the chimney will clear it of any debris, such as twigs and leaves that may have blown in. Occasionally a bird’s nest might have to be cleared away. It is also a good idea to clear the chimney of old soot, tar and creosote – doing so will enable the smoke to escape freely and help prevent chimney fires. Some insurance companies require residential chimneys to be swept every 12 months. Also, consider the types of wood you burn in your fireplace. Starting fires is easier with softwoods, but burning a hardwood yields a more sustainable warmth in the fireplace. Hardwoods are recommended for use in the home fireplace and, especially, in wood stoves. Softer woods are better suited to outdoor entertaining.

What is a chimney fire, and what should I watch out for?

Deon Visser, East Rand Fire, shares that a chimney fire is caused when deposits, such as soot and creosote, build up inside a chimney or stove pipe. As the deposits stick to the walls of the chimney, they are only partially burnt due to a lack of heat and oxygen inside, and if they get hot, they can catch fire again. The chimney structure isn’t designed to withstand the high temperatures of a fire, so this can result in serious damage to the structure. Birds’ nests and other debris (plant material) inside the chimney may also cause a chimney fire.

Flames are one of the most apparent signs of a chimney fire – these may be seen from the top of the chimney.

TOP TIP

You may also hear a loud cracking, popping or roaring noise, see smoke and identify a strong smell. Visually, there may be cracks and damage to the chimney and bits of creosote found outside the chimney. Having your chimney inspected and swept annually is a good way to prevent a chimney fire.

We painted our fireplace last spring, and I know from experience that the first fire of the season usually smells quite strong. Is there any way we can prevent this?

Noel Mashayamombe, head of technical decorative at Kansai Plascon, says that although Plascon Fireplace Paint is water-based, it does contain additives with volatile solvents, which are responsible for the odour given out during drying and/or when the first fire is made. It is not possible to completely eliminate the odour during the first fire. However, there are ways to minimise the intensity of the odour. Here are some recommendations:

• Ensure longer periods of drying before use of the fireplace to allow as much of the volatiles to leave the film so that by the time the first fire is lit, very few volatiles remainin the paint film.

If you have a fireplace in your home, for safety, you must have either a carbon dioxide or dry chemical powder fire extinguisher in your home. These are for Class A, B or C fires.

• Ensure good room ventilation during the drying process. Ventilation is important because it allows the volatiles to leave the paint film faster, as the room environment naturally attempts to equilibrate.

• Low heat during the first fire ensures that the residual volatiles leave gradually, thereby reducing the odour concentration. For effectiveness, this must be done together with the above points. Always follow the instructions on the product datasheet. Two key recommendations are to not dilute the paint during application and to ensure that the fireplace is cleaned before painting. Dilution of the paint will reduce the film thickness, which is important for metal/substrate protection. The unit should also be free of any oily or greasy contamination that will affect the adhesion of the paint.

We don’t have a chimney cowl, but I’ve been told they are beneficial. Should I consider one?

Rudie Scheepers, director at Home Fires, says yes, it’s definitely a must for any chimney. Cowls keep the rain out of the chimney system, and even if you don’t have any steel products, such as a braai or a fireplace, at the bottom of the chimney, your brick chimney can deteriorate with constant rainwater running down the chimney. If you do have a steel braai or steel fireplace, then a chimney cowl will protect the steel against corrosion caused by rainwater accumulating inside your appliance. Rotating or turbo chimney cowls also prevent wind from blowing down the chimney and causing smoke problems inside the house.

Consider the following when choosing the correct cowl:

Smoke Alarms

All homes should have smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. If you don’t have these essential safety devices, consider installing them. You can purchase a separate smoke alarm and carbon monoxide detector or dual units for both.

• Make sure the base of the cowl coincides with the opening of the chimney and doesn’t reduce the opening size as that might lead to smoke problems inside the house.

• If your chimney is very high and difficult to reach, choose a fixed cowl instead of a rotating one because rotating cowls need yearly maintenance to regrease the moving parts. If maintenance is neglected, a rotating cowl might seize and get stuck in a certain position.

Know The Lingo

• Soot is a black powder that remains when something is burned. It is a collection of carbon particles.

• Creosote is a mixture of chemicals that have very different properties depending on the wood being burnt. On one side, creosote can be a thick black tar-like substance and on the other side, a yellow liquid with a strong smoky smell – it’s usually a mixture and highly flammable. Creosote can build up as the smoke escapes your chimney; this mixes with moisture in the air and congeals on the sides of the chimney. Creosote build-up is a major cause of chimney fires.

Source:www.chimneysweep.co.za

TIME

1day, additional time for finishing