Enjoy your fireplace, safely

Home is where the Hearth is
A fire in the fireplace warms a room and casts a beautiful amber glow that creates a cozy, inviting and romantic atmosphere. But many homeowners avoid using their fireplace because of worries about safety or the hassle of starting a fire and cleaning up the mess. Jason Cameron, DIY Network star and home expert for Pine Mountain, offers these tips and ideas for getting your fireplace started and enjoying this hearth-warming feature of your home,
What are factors to consider deciding between a traditional or a gas fireplace?
In order to have a traditional, wood burning fireplace you must have a working chimney for ventilation. A chimney sweep can easily inspect this for you at a reasonable cost with prices averaging between $125 and $250. Other factors to consider are cleanliness, safety and relative cost per use.
How can I inexpensively update an old fireplace?
Fireplaces have come a long way since the traditional red brick and concrete. To achieve a sleek look, replacing dated brick with a metal surround to make your fireplace more contemporary. To achieve an expensive-looking marble look on a budget, use marble-look adhesive paper helps. Simply cut the adhesive paper into squares and cover the existing fireplace tile to transform your space. Applying the paper can bring a new focal point to your room and look like you’ve made a major upgrade. Updating the mantle is another easy option. Dress up your mantle each, like a wreath during the holidays or nautical decorations in the summertime. 

How do I safety and easily start a fire?
Before starting a fire, make sure your fireplace is clean to use. The National Fire Protection Association recommends sweeping and inspecting chimneys at least annually, usually taking place before your first fire of the season. This helps prevent the potential for a chimney fire.
Once your chimney is clean, starting a fire is easy. If you already have a stack of seasoned firewood to use, try a mess-free Firestarter like the new Pine Mountain^® ExtremeStart™ Firestarter. Simply place the firestarter below your seasoned firewood, light it at the indicated arrows, and your fire will spark up into flames within minutes, with no need to add kindling.

If you do not have firewood readily available, try an American Home™ by Yankee Candle® Balsam Fir Firelog. The wrapped log, which gives off a fresh scent fresh, is easy to light and requires no maintenance, so you can enjoy the ambience of the fire without having to collect or buy firewood.
What are some tricks to make a fire last longer?
The kind of wood you’re working with is important. Damp or green wood cause creosote buildup and do not light easily. Stack up with dry, seasoned firewood which burns cleaner and longer. Also, keep the display simple. Place larger pieces of wood on the bottom, then place additional pieces of wood in the opposite direction.  Place smaller pieces above this in the opposite direction. This simple patter will keep a fire roaring for hours.
Is there a “wrong” way to use a fireplace?
Manu users overlook safety measures for proper fireplace use. Even if you hire a professional chimney sweep once a year, it’s important to also self-clean your fireplace and chimney. This extra can remove dangerous creosote buildup in your chimney. Creosote is the chemical mass of carbon formed when wood is burned that needs to be periodically removed.
One easy way to remove creosote is with a Pine Mountain^® Creosote Buster^® Firelog.  Simply add the log to an existing fire at the start of the season and after every 40 fires. When heated, the powder in the firelog changes to an active gas and attacks the creosote in the chimney.

If you opt to start a fire with wood instead of a firelog, choose hard woods like oak and maple that  produce an intense, sustained fire, so you to burn less wood. Minimize soft woods like pine. Pine starts easily but burns quickly and gives off less heat than hardwoods. Pine also contains sap which can cause increased creosote build-up in your chimney.