Fireplace Tips To Get the Best Fire

The weather is getting colder and colder as we approach the last months of the year. What is a better way to keep your family warm and cozy than a fireplace? If you want to learn how to start a fire in a fireplace or wondering how to make a good fire, ehowhome has got you covered! Here are fireplace tips to get your best fire yet.

RELATED: How to Make a Realistic DIY Faux Fireplace

Before starting a fire, make sure to clean any ashes or trash, inspect your chimney, and prepare your fireplace and firewood. Flammable materials should be at least 3 feet away. Never start a fire in your fireplace without preparing it first. Toxic smoke can enter your home if you skip these important steps.

Here’s another tip for you: Easy DIY Fire Starter Using Cans & Cardboard

How to Start a Fire in a Fireplace

1 – Setting up

Set some newspaper first, then use kindling on top of it. After that, stack some of the well-dried oak about four to five logs. A lot of the splintering should be facing the fire as it comes up. That will help ignite the fire.

Do not use a lot of newspapers. When it burns it gets really smokey and will fill the room with smoke.

2 – Damper

The damper must be open. Do not try to build a fire unless you know the damper is open.  If it is not open, your entire house will be filled with smoke. You surely do not want that to happen.

3 – Glass doors

If you have glass doors on your firebox, be sure to open them for at least 30 minutes. You want the warm air of the room to go up through the chimney and warm the inside shaft. Warm air is going to pull through and help draw the air up through. It will help keep the smoke out of the room.

4 – Lighting

Light the newspaper up using long matches. The idea is to light up the tinder(dry flammable material) first. The kindling then lights the logs or the fuel.

5 – Gas starter

You can use a gas starter. The good thing about it is that it preheats the whole shaft so you make sure you have plenty of draw. If you don’t have that, you can buy some of the fake logs that are fire starters. You can put one of those in your firebox and help warm it up first before you start laying in all the logs.

Bonus Tip

If you find that it is not drawing enough air up through the chimney, just go across the room and crack a window a little bit. This will help pull the air through and go right up the chimney.

Fireplace Tips to Get the Best Fire