Dangerous chimney fires are not exactly a major contributor to the overall number of houses destroyed by fire or lives lost during fires in the South. But the farther north you go, the higher the statistical probability of damage to a house caused by a chimney fire. For instance, in the state of Washington, the proportional ratio of chimneys as the origin of substantial damage done to residential structures is quite impressive. Once a chimney fire has begun, there is very little a homeowner can do to stop the effects; at least there is very little that can be safely done. This qualifies as bad news, really bad news if you have been living under the assumption that chimney fires are easily containable because of the obvious benefit of chimney design. Looking for good news? Keep reading.
The really good news about chimney fires is that even though you are essentially, if not necessarily always, lacking in luck after an unfortunate occurrence of unwanted flames begin, you can quite easily take steps involving maintenance and prevention to stave off having to deal with the very real danger of chimney fires. Prevention starts with something that most chimney owners probably don't want to hear: get a professional to inspect your chimney every summer. Only a qualified chimney professional is going to be able to detect every single potential danger that could spark a life threatening fire. The downside here is that not every city is going to have a qualified professional. The warmer it is in your region during the winter months, the less likely you are to find a qualified chimney professional in your town.
So you may be on your own, but don't fret, because there is more good news: maintenance and protective steps against a chimney fire can be done quite easily without a professional. The only problem is you may miss some of the little things if you do it on your own, but the greater probability if you conduct yearly maintenance is that there will not be anything to miss. In the first place, that wood you burn may save your life. It is vital, imperative, essentially and very important that you burn only seasoned hardwood. Burning wet wood is not only counterproductive, because it creates less heat than dry wood, but the moisture also serves to create more creosote and carbon monoxide, which increase the possibility of a fire. Those secondary gases that arrive as a result of those little items can ignite and make what started out as a cozy evening into an inferno to remember.
If your town does not have a professional chimney inspector, there is probably little likelihood it possesses chimney sweeps. But if it does, go ahead and hire one. You don't have to worry anymore about child labor laws being violated or American chimney sweepers singing in thick, bad Cockney accents while dancing atop your roof, so go ahead and make the investment. A chimney can get quite disgusting after a season of use and a cleaning in the off season is highly recommended for the same reason as you want to avoid unseasoned hardwood. Creosote is going to build up even if the wood you use is hardened nearly to the point of petrifaction. Clean it. Clean it like clockwork, and if you can't get a chimney sweeper or just don't want to, there are plenty of gadgets and tools that allow you to clean the flue yourself quite nicely.
There is a paradox when it comes to chimney safety. The warmer and more comfortable you are inside against the ravages of extreme climate outside, the less safe you may actually be. When the weather gets colder outside than the internal temperature, it can actually cause the smoke to cool down to the point where condensation takes place, leading to the formation of, you guessed it, creosote. As you might have guessed, controlling the amount of creosote that builds up inside the chimney is key to preventing or diminishing the possibility of a dangerous fire that escapes the confines of the simple two-way design and sends the flames of death and destruction coursing throughout your home.
Autor: Timothy Sexton
Timothy Sexton is a copywriter for Yodle Local, a business directory an online advertising company. Find more chimney cleaning tips and info at local.yodle.com/articles.
Added: July 16, 2009
Source: http://ezinearticles.com/
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