With the weather getting a lot colder during the nights many people who have Bend Oregon homes for sale are using their fireplaces to stay warm at night but the sad thing is that their fireplaces are accidents waiting to happen because, they didn’t clean or maintain them since the last time that they used them.
In this post we are going to cover fireplace safety 101 so you if own Bend Oregon Homes, or Real Estate anywhere else in the country, you can make sure that the fireplaces in those homes are safe and ready to use.
Contact a Chimney Sweep
Before using a fireplace in Bend Oregon Homes, a chimney sweep should always be hired first to clean out any creosote or soot that has built up over the last year because, creosote can build up fast especially if the user of the chimney is burning a variety of woods.
Inspect Your Chimney Cap
All Bend Oregon Homes that have chimneys will have a cap that enables the smoke to vent but also the purpose of the cap is to keep out any birds or rodents that might try to crawl down the chimney during warmer times of the year. To check your chimney cap you will need to use a ladder and climb up to your roof, the whole process will take a few minutes but it’s worth the effort to insure that your fireplace will burn safely.
Clean the Inside of Your Fireplace
Before lighting the first fire in a chimney, owners of Bend Oregon homes should spend five minutes cleaning the inside of their fireplace with a wire brush to remove soot build up that’s accumulated over time; soot is easy to clean and the whole process takes just a few minutes as well.
Consider Burning Hardwoods
Why burn hardwoods in the chimneys of Bend Oregon Homes? The answer is simple; hardwoods like maple, birch, ash and oak will many times burn longer, hotter and they will leave less buildup of soot and creosote in the chimney.
For more information on chimney safety in Bend Oregon Homes, or to view the latest homes for sale in the area, contact me today by calling (541) 383-1426.