During these unexpectedly cold winter months, we hope our cast-stone fireplace mantels helped keep you and your family warm. From our favorite designs to ways you can share warm meals with your loved ones on cold nights, we enjoyed sharing what inspires us to create custom fireplace mantels and stone range hoods for your home. As we move into March, we want to help you maintain a sense of warmth and what better way than extending our 10% discount off all mantels? Get our free full-colored catalog to get your creative juices flowing and consult our blog for design inspiration from around the world.
Expert Tip: How to Maintain Your Fireplace
Whether your fireplace is supplementing your main source of heat or is your heat source, it’s important to maintain it to keep it in good working condition for best results. More than serving a function, your fireplace mantel and box is the hearth of your home where family gathers for memorable moments. Making sure your fireplace looks as good as it functions will help keep its reputation as a gathering place for you and your loved ones. Here are some tips to help you maintain your fireplace on the inside to let the beauty of the design stand out:
- Be sure to clean your chimney or fireplace at least once a year,
- Between professional inspections and cleanings, monitor your fireplace for signs of buildup or other problems,
- For a wood-burning fireplace, burn hardwoods like maple, ash, oak and birch. These types of woods burn hot and long and have less pitch and sap making them cleaner to handle. They also cause less build up, but may be costlier than softwoods.
- Or for a, “greener,” fireplace, opt for composition logs. They burn 50% less smoke and pollutants when burned than wood, but without that earthy scent most often associated with a cozy fire.
- Burn clean. Burn only clean, seasoned wood, manufactured logs, and non-glossy white paper in your fireplace. Garbage, plastics, rubber, painted or treated wood, particle board, plywood, coal, charcoal briquettes, and colored paper produce toxic fumes – the kind that can harm your lungs and clog your flue.
- On the outside, ensure that the chimney cap is in good condition (i.e. no debris, leaves, etc.)
- Examine the mortar between bricks to make sure that it is in good condition, and not cracked or flaking away.
- Clean your wood-burning fireplace’s interior including its floor regularly. Sweep out or vacuum up cold ashes. Wear a dust mask and gloves when cleaning the fireplace.
Enjoy a roaring fire as warm as your mantel is exceptional. You can now indulge in your cozy fire stress-free knowing it’s as clean and as well maintained as it could be. What tips do you have for maintaining your fireplace? Share with us on Facebook or Twitter!
An Affordable and Fun At-Home Family Activity
As tax season rolls around, we are especially mindful of saving money or planning for windfalls. Save your tax return this year and enjoy the beauty of your home and stone range hood by bringing your family together in the kitchen—a, “staycation” of sorts.
Cooking together is more than just a trendy way to introduce healthier practices into your home; it’s a way to create something delicious before enjoying it in a warm space. Need inspiration? Check out our design inspired recipes for a delectable trip around the world.
If those recipes and designs have you clamoring for an upgrade or redesign to your space, check out our online inspiration center or contact us today!