mikeeide - Mr. Fireplace

Fireplace Safety: A Comprehensive Guide for Western Canadian Homes

mikeeide — Wed, 13 Sep 2023 16:39:55 +0000

Fireplaces add warmth, ambiance, and charm to Western Canadian homes, but they also come with safety considerations that should not be overlooked. This comprehensive guide aims to provide valuable safety information to homeowners, helping them prevent accidents, maintain proper ventilation, and address common safety concerns associated with fireplaces. By following these guidelines, you can enjoy the comfort and beauty of your fireplace while keeping your home and loved ones safe.

Types of Fireplaces

There are several kinds of fireplaces to consider, such as gas, wood, pellet stoves and electric fireplaces. Each comes with their own advantages and disadvantages. With Electric fireplaces, there are no open flames to worry about with young children and animals, and with stoves, wood, and gas fireplaces, accidents are prevented through the use of doors, mesh, and sealants.
With flush-to-the-wall designs, there is a prevented tripping hazard. Whether that be from a cord or stands.

Fireplace Installation and Inspection

With the technicians at Mr. Fireplace, a safe installation is ensured thanks to our site inspections and constant communication with our customers.
A clean and well-running fireplace should be checked and cleaned at least once a year! Allowing your fireplace to get serviced often allows us to check for any faults or flaws, as well as make sure it is spic and span for the colder seasons! With our service PSA, it is possible to do so with a discounted price – even receiving a discount on parts!

Fireplace Accessories and Safety Tools

Essential items for owning a fireplace, the worst-case scenarios, can include fire extinguishers. But thankfully, the risk of needing to use them can be prevented further through the use of proper flame covers, such as mesh and glass doors, much like you see with gas fireplaces and wood stoves!
Such things prevent exposure to the flames

Fireplaces are not just sources of heat; they are also central to the home’s character and comfort. However, ensuring fireplace safety is crucial to protect your home and family. This comprehensive guide has provided valuable information on preventing accidents, addressing common safety concerns, and the importance of getting service on your fireplace. By following these guidelines, you can enjoy the warmth and beauty of your fireplace with peace of mind. Stay safe, stay warm, and enjoy your cozy Western Canadian home to the fullest.

The post Fireplace Safety: A Comprehensive Guide for Western Canadian Homes first appeared on Mr. Fireplace.

Why Wood Fireplaces Are Still a Good Option for Your Home – Part 3: Cost-Effective Heating

mikeeide — Fri, 05 May 2023 15:50:37 +0000

In addition to its aesthetic appeal, a wood fireplace can also be a cost-effective way to heat your home. While the upfront cost of installing wood fireplaces may be higher than other heating options, the long-term savings can be significant.

Wood is a renewable resource that is often cheaper than other heating fuels like natural gas or electricity. In many cases, homeowners can save hundreds of dollars each year by using a wood fireplace instead of a gas furnace or electric heater.

In addition, wood fireplaces can also provide heat during power outages, making them a reliable source of warmth when other heating systems fail. This can be especially important for those living in areas prone to severe weather or frequent power outages.

However, it’s important to note that using a wood fireplace as your primary heat source requires a bit of work and preparation. You’ll need to have a steady supply of firewood, and you’ll need to properly season and store it to ensure it burns efficiently.

You’ll also need to regularly clean your chimney to prevent buildup of creosote, a flammable substance that can cause chimney fires. This maintenance can be time-consuming and may require the services of a professional chimney sweep.

Despite these considerations, many homeowners find that the cost savings and reliability of a wood fireplace make it a worthwhile investment. In the next section, we’ll explore the health and environmental benefits of using a wood fireplace for heating.

Part 1: Introduction

Part 2: Aesthetics and Ambiance

The post Why Wood Fireplaces Are Still a Good Option for Your Home – Part 3: Cost-Effective Heating first appeared on Mr. Fireplace.

Why Wood Fireplaces Are Still a Good Option for Your Home – Part 2: Aesthetics and Ambiance

mikeeide — Wed, 19 Apr 2023 13:25:01 +0000

A Wood Fireplace can add more than just warmth to your home.

One of the most appealing aspects of a wood fireplace is the ambiance it creates. There’s something special about gathering around a crackling fire with family and friends, enjoying the warmth and comfort it provides.

But beyond the practical benefits, a wood fireplace can also be a stylish and eye-catching addition to any home. Whether you’re going for a traditional or modern look, there are a wide range of styles and designs to choose from.

For example, if you’re looking for a classic look, a traditional brick fireplace with a simple mantel might be the perfect choice. On the other hand, if you’re going for a more contemporary aesthetic, a sleek, minimalist design with clean lines and glass doors might be more your style.

Wood fireplaces can also be customized in a variety of ways to suit your personal tastes and preferences. For example, you can add decorative tiles, paint the mantel to match your decor, or even install a custom fire screen.

In addition to adding aesthetic appeal to your home, a wood fireplace can also increase its value. Many homebuyers are willing to pay a premium for a home with a fireplace, making it a smart investment if you’re looking to sell your home in the future.

Overall, the aesthetic benefits of a wood fireplace are clear. Not only does it create a warm and inviting atmosphere, but it can also add value and style to your home. In the next section, we’ll explore another compelling reason why wood fireplaces are still a good option for homeowners: cost-effective heating.

Part 1: Introduction

Part 3: Cost Effective Heating

The post Why Wood Fireplaces Are Still a Good Option for Your Home – Part 2: Aesthetics and Ambiance first appeared on Mr. Fireplace.

Why Wood Fireplaces Are Still a Good Option for Your Home – Part 1: Introduction

mikeeide — Fri, 14 Apr 2023 20:34:39 +0000

When it comes to home heating options, there are plenty of choices available. From electric heaters to gas furnaces to geothermal heat pumps, homeowners have a wide range of technologies and fuels to choose from.

Despite this variety, however, there’s still something special about a wood fireplace. Whether it’s the comforting crackle of the flames, the cozy warmth it provides, or the traditional ambiance it creates, a wood fireplace can bring a unique sense of comfort and nostalgia to any home.

In this five-part blog series, we’ll explore why wood fireplaces are still a good option for homeowners in today’s modern world. We’ll cover everything from aesthetics and ambiance to cost-effective heating, health and environmental benefits, and maintenance and safety.

But before we dive into the specifics, let’s take a brief look at the history of wood fireplaces and why they continue to be relevant today.

Wood fireplaces have been a staple of home heating for centuries, dating back to medieval times when castles and manor houses were warmed by large stone hearths. As time went on, wood fireplaces became more refined and elegant, with ornate mantelpieces, intricate carvings, and decorative tiles.

In the 20th century, as central heating systems became more common, wood fireplaces began to fall out of favor. However, in recent years, they’ve seen a resurgence in popularity as homeowners seek to add character and charm to their homes.

So why are wood fireplaces still a good option today? In the following posts, we’ll explore the many reasons why these timeless heating fixtures continue to have a place in modern homes.

Part 2: Aesthetics and Ambiance

Part 3: Cost Effective Heating

The post Why Wood Fireplaces Are Still a Good Option for Your Home – Part 1: Introduction first appeared on Mr. Fireplace.

Tips for Burning Wood

mikeeide — Tue, 22 Sep 2020 16:42:38 +0000

Burning wood made simple

It’s almost Christmas and frosty nights are moving in. Make no bones about it, Old Man Winter is here! Soon wood stoves and inserts across the country will rise to the occasion, heating our homes and warming our hearts all winter long. Make light work of building fires with this common sense advice.

It Takes Two to Tango
Good fires require two things – the right stove and the right wood. If you have an older stove or insert that’s not EPA-certified or built in this century, it’s inefficient. Period. Upgrade to a stove that’s EPA-certified and outfitted with the best wood-burning technologies like Quadra-Fire stoves. With minimal particulate emissions they are kinder to the environment, and a single load of wood will produce heat for many hours – provided you choose the best wood for burning.

Garbage in, Garbage Out
Don’t expect great fires from poor quality wood. You need to know how to choose firewood. Broadleaf species like oak, ash, maple and hickory will burn the best and longest. There’s nothing wrong with softer woods like pine or cedar, but they tend to burn faster and have higher concentrations of sap, producing more smoke and sparks. Also, make sure logs are cut in 16- to 18-inch lengths – this is a good rule of thumb to ensure they fit into the stove for burning.

Haste Makes Waste
Make sure your wood, no matter what species, has been seasoned properly before attempting to burn it in your stove or insert. This process can’t be rushed. The best wood for burning has been cut, split and stacked for at least six months so it’s free of sap, no longer green, and very dry.

Adding Fuel to the Fire
When it comes to learning how to build a fire, practice makes perfect. It’s done in stages and basic steps include opening the air controls, building and lighting a base of newspaper and kindling, ensuring there’s a draft up the flue, adding three to four logs and closing the door. Your Quadra-Fire stove or insert will do the rest. When it’s time to append the fire with more wood, don’t be stingy by adding just one log. Add two or three logs at a time so there’s more surface area to keep the fire burning.

Burning the Midnight Wood
Before hitting the hay, keep your stove warm all night by supplementing the fire with a few more logs – and pick thicker and bigger logs for this job. In the morning, a warm stove and coals will make stoking the fire faster and easier.

Last but not least, make the most of your wood stove by ensuring it’s maintained properly. The bottom line is without a properly maintained stove, you aren’t playing with a full deck.

The post Tips for Burning Wood first appeared on Mr. Fireplace.

Important Fireplace Safety Tips

mikeeide — Tue, 22 Sep 2020 16:42:38 +0000

Safety tips for operating your fireplace

It’s a simple concept that we all understand – fireplaces can get hot. But sometimes, especially with gas fireplaces that have sealed combustion systems behind glass, it’s easy to overlook basic gas fireplace safety.

When using any fireplace – gas fireplaces included – there are real flames and hot gases involved. The fire is contained, but as the fireplace warms the room, the materials that surround the fire can get hot, like the metal surrounding the firebox and the glass, which can reach temperatures high enough to cause serious burns if touched. This is why it’s immensely important to ensure a fireplace safety barrier screen is installed over the glass, as well considering the additional safety tips we’ve outlined below.

The post Important Fireplace Safety Tips first appeared on Mr. Fireplace.

OLD WOOD FIREPLACES: THEY JUST SUCK

mikeeide — Tue, 22 Sep 2020 16:42:38 +0000

Not to sound like Cliff Clavin, but it’s a “little known fact” that masonry-style, old-timey wood fireplaces are inefficient – and they aren’t just slightly inefficient. They cost homeowners hundreds of dollars a year in wasted energy, and actually make houses draftier and colder than those without old wood fireplaces. If you have one in your home, you may not want to believe it – but the U.S. Department of Energy says it’s true. For every hour your wood fireplace operates, it can exhaust 24,000 cubic feet of warm air outside your home, while drawing cold air in through the doors and windows. That’s just backwards and defeats the purpose of having a fireplace, which is to make our homes warmer.

Here’s the good news: updating your old wood fireplace can be relatively inexpensive, and you don’t have to sacrifice the beauty of your existing hearth to make it more efficient and convenient. It’s called a gas fireplace insert and it will transform your fireplace into a heat-producing, beautiful home amenity. Here’s why thousands of homeowners across the country have installed them:

The post OLD WOOD FIREPLACES: THEY JUST SUCK first appeared on Mr. Fireplace.

HOW YOU HEAT & GLO: FIREPLACE INSTALLATION INSPIRATION

mikeeide — Tue, 22 Sep 2020 16:42:38 +0000

For most of us, our homes are where we spend the most time – and where we make the most significant investments. With the economy on the upswing and consumer confidence rising, many people are making their dream homes reality by building new or remodeling existing houses. In both scenarios, installing a fireplace is often at the top of the list – and for good reason. In addition to providing a dramatic focal point like nothing else can, a fireplace adds the kind of warmth and coziness that brings people together. Fireplaces truly are the heart of our homes.

Ask any interior designer about fireplaces and you’ll quickly learn there are more style and design options than ever before. Fireplaces fall into three basic design categories, making it possible to find a perfect style to complement your new or existing home’s décor.

Traditional
People have an inherent, almost primal attraction to burning wood in a fireplace. Gas fireplaces with super-realistic logs and natural stone or wood surrounds provide all the things we love about wood fireplaces, but in a much more convenient, nearly maintenance-free package.

Contemporary
Fireplaces with a modern flair offer the same benefits as traditional fireplaces, but with exciting new designs. Similar to how we display art, they are often positioned higher on the wall – even at eye level. They use gas technology in new ways, featuring linear and stylistic flames that flicker in unison alongside interiors and surrounds made of materials like crystals and black onyx.

Transitional
A blend of modern and traditional styles, transitional or “fusion” design is all the rage. It includes the best of both worlds with elements that are simple and timeless. Heat & Glo offers several transitional fireplaces that blend the most desirable characteristics of traditional and contemporary design.

The fireplaces we featured in this blog barely scratch the surface of all the styles and designs from which you can choose. Scroll through hundreds of options in Heat & Glo’s Idea Gallery here.

The post HOW YOU HEAT & GLO: FIREPLACE INSTALLATION INSPIRATION first appeared on Mr. Fireplace.

Making the Most of Your Wood Stove

mikeeide — Tue, 22 Sep 2020 16:42:38 +0000

Wood stoves and how to make the most of them

It’s November and if you’re like most wood stove owners, the cordwood is stacked, seasoned and ready to go. Depending on where you live, perhaps you’ve already stoked your stove for those first highly anticipated fires of the season. Make the most of your wood stove’s efficiency by ensuring it’s up to snuff and ready for the season ahead.

There’s more to maintaining a wood stove than removing ashes and cleaning the glass. Your stove is a heating workhorse and deserves a close look now, as well as periodically during the winter months. Here are a few wood stove maintenance tips for inspecting areas of your stove crucial to efficiency.

Stove Pipe – your stove pipe endures high temperatures and if corrosion develops, it should be replaced. Examine your stove pipe, especially where it connects to the chimney.
Fire Box – periodically inspect the inside of your stove. Look for cracks in the brick or damaged baffles. If anything needs attention, consult your stove dealer for parts and/or a service call.
Door Gasket – a tight door seal creates good draft and prevents smoke leakage. Test if the seal is still tight by inserting a piece of paper or crisp dollar bill in the door and shutting it, then try to pull the paper out. If you are able to pull it out anywhere around the door, the gasket needs to be replaced.

Also have a chimney sweep or professional stove dealer inspect your wood stove’s chimney. They will check for leaks, cracks, warping, baffle gaps, creosote buildup and other issues that could hamper your stove’s performance or worse, lead to chimney fires or carbon monoxide intrusions. This should be done at least annually.

The post Making the Most of Your Wood Stove first appeared on Mr. Fireplace.

USING A MODERN FIREPLACE INSERT TO UPDATE AN OLD HOME

mikeeide — Tue, 22 Sep 2020 16:42:33 +0000

REFRESH AN OLD HOME WITH A MODERN FIREPLACE INSERT

When providing design services for clients with older homes, interior designers are presented with a variety of unique opportunities and challenges. Unlike new homes, many older homes have era-specific architectural features that offer a unique, creative foundation for expanding upon. At the same time, challenges are also inherent when updating older homes, such as limited space and declining structures. However, there’s one relatively inexpensive and very practical upgrade that lends itself perfectly to the majority of older homes with aged, drafty, wood-burning fireplaces: gas fireplace inserts.

Designers like Samantha Friedman know this and frequently incorporate gas fireplace insert upgrades into remodels of older homes. Friedman, who owns East Coast-based Samantha Friedman Interior Designs, LLC, has a philosophy of creating beautiful designs for clients that are livable and comfortable. She places priority on creating functional designs that address the specific needs and desires of the homeowner.

Dupont Circle
Friedman recently completed a redesign of a 100-year old home in Dupont Circle, Washington, D.C. Comfort and function were primary concerns for the client, who hired Friedman to remodel almost every room in the house.

While the client was open to new ideas and willing to venture outside their comfort zone from a style perspective, retaining the integrity of the 100-year old house weighed heavily on the project. This required carefully balancing the historical character of the house while making significant functional and aesthetic updates to key spaces. “Space planning and layouts for the house were very important, as the rooms were odd sizes,” said Friedman.

From Obstacle to Opportunity
One of the biggest obstacles to address for Friedman was in a bathroom, which was a key space in the home. Right in the middle of the bathroom was an original, masonry wood-burning fireplace. Anchored directly in front of the bathtub, the fireplace was tired, drafty and unattractive.

The solution? Friedman arranged a complete facelift with a Heat & Glo COSMO gas fireplace insert. She chose this particular model for its unmistakable modern design and customizable options. She selected the Halo front in fog and crushed glass for the interior fire bed – a fine choice for a project merging traditional and modern design.

“We never would have been able to make the tub the central focus of the space, located where it is,” said Friedman. “This allowed me to make the fire stack a focal point.”

When asked where she drew design inspiration for incorporating a fireplace insert, Friedman said, “Men’s fashion. By using the gas insert, we made the space both functional and beautiful.”

Every home is different and Samantha Friedman aims to bring out unique personalities through layered colors and textures, while blending current styles with traditional elements. Visit her on her website, Houzz, and Pinterest.

The post USING A MODERN FIREPLACE INSERT TO UPDATE AN OLD HOME first appeared on Mr. Fireplace.