14 Fireplace Safety Tips

With autumn and winter right around the corner, households across the country will soon be getting cosy by their fireplaces. Whether you have a wood, electric or gas fire, it’s important to enjoy the warmth and ambience of a fireplace while still making sure you don’t neglect safety. 

So, to help you keep safe and protected, this article will outline some essential fireplace safety tips that every homeowner should know. 

14 Fireplace Safety Tips

Here are our top tips which cover general fireplace safety, but also advice that is specific to certain types of fire e.g. electric, gas, wood-burning. 

1. Ensure your installer is gas-safe or HETAS registered: Safety starts from the word go, which means ensuring your installer is fully experienced and trained to be installing your fireplace. If it’s a gas fire, make sure your chosen installer is Gas Safe approved – such as the experts at Enviro-Flame.

2. Install carbon monoxide and smoke alarms: Get an early warning sign if things go amiss with your fire by installing carbon monoxide alarms and smoke alarms – make sure you test them regularly and that they’re installed in the correct location, too!

3. Don’t leave a fire unattended: If you’re going to bed or leaving the house, always remember to put a fire out. And if you have any young children, never leave them alone in a room with a burning fire.

4. Check for frayed wiring: In the case of electrical fireplaces, an occasional check of the wiring can catch problems early by spotting any frayed or worn wires. Also, check plugs and sockets for scorch marks. Get these seen to quickly.
5. Unplug when not in use: Again, electrical fires should ideally be unplugged completely when not in use. This enhances safety and saves on energy bills.

6. Ensure that all embers are quenched: When you’ve put out a fire at the end of the day, don’t think it’s okay to leave a few embers burning, no matter how small. If these embers were to drift from the fire and land on something flammable, this could result in a real fire breaking out. To avoid this, always thoroughly put out fires, embers and all. If you’re using a stove, make sure to close all air intakes to turn the fire off.
7. Ensure the flue is open before lighting: Open up the flue or damper before lighting a fire, otherwise smoke will back up into your home instead of escaping out the room as it should. Gas fire dampers should be permanently fixed open.

8. Use safety nursery guards to protect babies, children and pets: Babies, young children and pets are often curious of their surroundings and may venture too close to a fire. That’s why it’s important to place a safety nursery guard in front of your fire to bar any exploratory hands or paws. Also make sure to keep any fire accessories, such as lighters or matches, out of reach as well.
9. Get your chimney cleaned regularly: Over time, soot and creosote can build up. A part of responsible chimney ownership is getting it checked over by a professional every now and then who can clean the chimney and assess any safety risks. Here at Enviro-Flame, we offer chimney sweep and chimney CCTV services to take care of your chimney and spot any problems early on. For gas fires this should be done once per year, solid fuel fires twice or more.

10. Choose fuels wisely: If you’re burning solid fuels, opt for dry or older wood as freshly chopped wood tends to be quite moisture-rich which is not ideal for burning as it releases more soot. Also avoid burning materials that have been treated or materials that simply don’t belong in a fireplace. Did you know that it’s illegal to burn fresh wood due to ECO 2022 rules? 

11. Clean ash regularly: Naturally, with fuel-burning fires, a layer of ash will start to build up at the bottom. Try and keep this at a minimum lest it reduce air circulation to new fuels. You can also revitalise ash by using it in the garden!

12. Keep surrounding areas clear of flammable material: Place flammable materials well away from your fire. Your fireplace should be in a purpose made location.

13. Don’t overload sockets: We all know that it isn’t wise to overload a plug socket with too many plugs, but we recommend going one step further with this safety tip when it comes to electric fires by avoiding plugging them into extension leads – instead, plug them directly into the wall, and unplug them when not in use.

14. Buy a fireplace rug: A fire-resistant rug laid in front of your fireplace can give an extra level of protection for your carpet, preventing any damage from rogue sparks. If this isn’t something you would want, a spark guard should be used at the very least.

Searching for a brand new fireplace? Here at Enviro-Flame, we are one of London’s leading suppliers and installers, with a huge range of gas, electric and solid fuel fires to suit all budgets and tastes. Simply chat to our team or drop by our impressive showroom to find your perfect fireplace.