Fireplace Cleaning
Our chimney sweeping and cleaning service focuses on having your chimney completely spotless and functioning safely. However, that’s only for the internal parts of your chimney that go unseen. For visible parts that you and your guests will see – since a fireplace is the focal point of any room – we turn to fireplace cleaning.
Fireplace cleaning is what you turn to when you want your fireplace restored as a positive focal point in your living room. A clean fireplace can really change the feeling and dynamic in a room.
When you or your guest congregate in the living room, what vibe is your fireplace producing?
Is your fireplace dirty, worn out, tired looking and need an upgrade? Is it saying, “don’t look at me!”
Or is it clean and spotless? Does it stretch out its arms and say, “look at me! Breath me in and enjoy it!”?
Better yet. What does a clean or dirty fireplace say about you and your home?
At Philadelphia Chimney Sweep our Fireplace Cleaning service has the goal of making your fireplace look spectacularly clean. That’s a goal we meet and exceed!
But we are also here to make you look good. It’s the desire of every homeowner to invite guests into a clean and welcoming home that represents your best qualities. We help you get there with a cleaned fireplace – both inside and outside.
If you want all these qualities, but don’t like the upkeep associated with owning a wood fireplace, consider a gas fireplace!
Fireplace Cleaning Service
Fireplace cleaning involves cleaning all the visible parts of a chimney you can see from inside your home. Some areas require special attention or have special cleaning methods. Here is a detailed list.
- Firebox – This is the opening where a fire is made. On the back of the firebox you’ll likely find burn marks
- Grate – This metal piece sits on the bottom of your firebox. This is where you place the wood to burn so it’s off the ground.
- Hearth – This is the area out in front of the fireplace. It’s essentially the base of your fireplace.
- Facing – This is the brick or stone above your firebox that faces your room. This can turn black from smoke – which is a sign of a poorly designed smoke chamber or an obstruction in your chimney.
- Mantle – This is the well-known shelf outside your chimney.
- Masonry – This is the brick or stone above the mantel
- Fireplace Screen – This is the glass screen covering your firebox – often attached to an insert.
Not all fireplaces have these features. If your has it and it is used, it must be cleaned out.
- Ash Pit Cover – This is a cast iron door on the floor of your fireplace. Used ashes go here.
- Ash Pit – This is an open cavity beneath your fireplace where ashes are discarded.
- Cleanout Door – This door gives you access to the ash pit so it may be cleaned out. You’ll find this on the back of your chimney – very often outside.
As you can see there are a lot of parts to a simple looking fireplace. Each one takes special consideration to clean and some take special tools. At Philadelphia Chimney Sweep we have the tools, experience, and passion to clean your fireplace from top to bottom and make a positive focal point of any room.
Fireplace Cleaning DYI
We completely understand that you will want to clean some parts of your fireplace. After all, we’ve probably all cleaned out ashes from a fireplace with little difficulty. While that’s true, a more thorough cleaning should be done by professionals. There are some things we can see that point to larger concerns or things we can do to make your wood burning experience more enjoyable.
Here are some general but important steps and reminders for when you clean a fireplace.
Place a drop clothe on the floor around your fireplace before cleaning. Wood ash is extremely fine and can get everywhere. Placing a cloth around your fireplace catches escaping ash from getting on your floor, carpet or couch.
Wait 24 hour after burning to clean out your fireplace. Wood embers can stay hot for quite some time. To prevent unwanted fires wait 24 hours to clean out your fireplace.
Wear old clothes and gloves. This is a dirty job, after all.
Spot clean first – there are a lot of formulas out there for cleaning including off the counter solutions, which tend to be more caustic. Spot clean a hidden area first before tackling the entire project. This will help prevent a worse looking fireplace from when you started.