Make Your Home Smell Great

If you own a woodstove or woodburning fireplace, you have an incredible opportunity to use this heat in a fun and practical way. Instead of burning scented candles or using scented spray, consider using a decorative steamer or kettle to make your home smell great. Simply fill a pretty steamer with water and add a few drops of scented oil, such as StoveScents by Condar, place it on your stove or in your fireplace, and your home will be filled with an inviting and fresh scent of your choice.

There are many different types of steamers and kettles that add beauty to your stovetop. And you can hang a kettle in your woodburning fireplace easily with a wrought iron fireplace crane that will swivel in and out of the fire for ease of access. Enjoy a new scent for the winter season, and at the same time humidify your home!

Getting Your Fireplace Ready for Christmas

A beautiful example of a fireplace ready for Christmas.

Now is the perfect time to start decorating your fireplace for Christmas. On that special day, you can all gather around the nice warm, glowing fire and enjoy the long-time tradition of opening your stalkings in front of the fireplace. Make it extra special this year and add a little holiday cheer to this centerpiece of your home.

Here’s just a few ideas:

1.  Place a few sprigs of garland or holly on top of your mantel. Add a few well placed Christmas ornaments and maybe a small string of lights. On one side of the mantel, you can arrange a few tapered candles in the color of your choice. But don’t go overboard. Sometimes keeping it simple is better.

2.  Empty your ash bucket of its old ashes and instead fill it with pine cones or pine branches or even some pretty poinsettias. Purchase a wide ribbon and tie a big bow around it.

3.  Hang a big Christmas wreath above your fireplace. Try to keep within the same color scheme as the rest of your fireplace decorations. This will give your fireplace a sophisticated and professional look.

4.  Don’t forget about the stalkings! Make sure you have sturdy hangers so that when Santa comes to fill them, the stalkings won’t fall down.

5.  Place a bow around the top of your fireplace tool set to give them a touch of festivity, too.

Have fun really dressing up your fireplace this year for Christmas. Make it a family affair and let your children join in on some of the easier ideas, such as filling the ash bucket with pine cones. Just keep in mind that safety is important, too. Keep anything that could be flammable away from the reach of the flames. Keep your fireplace screens in place so those sparks don’t fly out. And keep your spirits light as you celebrate this joyful and giving time of year!

Fireplace Screens are Decorative and Practical

A beautiful example of a fireplace screen with doors.

Although many people think of a fireplace screen as purely decorative, they do have a very important purpose. The number one reason to keep a fire screen around the front of your fireplace is to keep any hot embers or flying sparks from coming out and landing on your hearth or other flammable flooring (or even on you!).

 

While some fireplace screens have handles on them so that you can move them when you need to tend to your fire, there are other inventive models out there that have convenient doors which you can simply open when stoking the fire or adding more fuel. Just remember to always replace the screen or close the doors so those sparks stay where they belong.

The safety feature of fireplace screens is definitely the most important reason to own one. But that is not to say that you cannot keep it on your hearth while your fireplace is not in use. Certainly, the more decorative styles (and there are many available) can be used purely for making your home more beautiful. Some people who already have a glass door design on their fireplaces decide to purchase a fireplace screen anyway simply to add beauty and individual design to their hearth.

Creating a specific style for your fireplace can be a satisfying and fun way to make your home unique to your individual tastes.

Clean Up with an Ash Vacuum

Clean out your fireplace quickly and easily.

We are well into the cold weather season. Its time to think about fireplace maintenance again. Your fireplace may be getting filled with ashes. How are you going to clean it out? You could use the traditional method of sweeping up the ashes with a brush and shovel. But isn’t that kind of messy?

 

A better way would be to vacuum it up. It’s quick and most ash vacuums are specially designed to keep the fine particles of ash contained instead of spreading throughout your house as pesky dust.

The Cheetah II Ash Vacuum even has a festive winter scene on it, so you can keep it right on your hearth, if you so wish. This model is equipped with a dual filter system. The first filter traps any hot particles that may have been hiding in your ash. The second easy-clean filter traps sub-micron particles.

Stop sweeping up all that dust into your room and make cleaning your fireplace simple this year!

Christmas Decoration Ideas – Ash Buckets

Turn this boring ash bucket into a festive holiday decoration!

‘Tis the season, and with all this merry-making it’s time to do a little fun decorating around your fireplace. Here’s something that is quick and easy and inexpensive. Empty your ash bucket and use it as Christmas home decor!

 

This decorating idea is super simple. Go outside and clip some yummy smelling sprigs of pine from your pine tree. (If you don’t have any nearby pines, your local arts and crafts store is sure to carry some of the fake stuff.) Fill your ash bucket with these sprigs and add a few pine cones sticking out of the top. Then wrap a festive bow around the outsideetf the ash bucket. Place it on your hearth….and you’re done! Super easy, super fun and super Christmasy!

By the way, if you don’t happen to own an ash bucket, but really like this idea, you can find many designs on our website, www.TheMasterFirePlace.com. Hint: Black goes with everything!

Splitting Firewood Made Easy

Make splitting firewood quick and easy this year!

If you have a lot of extra logs lying around and don’t relish the idea of splitting them all by hand, (who would want to?) then you might want to think about an electric log splitter. These time-saving (and back-saving) machines will make quick work of your entire pile of firewood and get you ready in no time for the fire-burning season.

 

Instead of spending hours working hard outside, start enjoying a nice relaxing evening by a roaring c re. A hydraulic wood splitter can easily split the hardest and most well-seasoned logs you can find. Using your home’s electric current, the Woodeze 4-Ton Electric Log Splitter can slice through your wood with a lot less noise than a gas or diesel log splitter. That means you could even use it in the garage and out of the cold!

Fireplace Candelabra as Table Centerpiece

Use this as an easy, yet beautiful centerpiece.

The Christmas season is upon us, the time when friends and family gather to enjoy the seasons celebrations. Many times these gatherings center around a delicious and elaborate meal. Having a beautiful centerpiece to display on your table can create a warm and inviting atmosphere to this time of fun and fellowship.

 

If you don’t already own such a centerpiece, they are very easily made with little time or effort. Simply placing some seasonal foliage around a big candle can be enough to really set apart a small table. If you have a larger family and therefore a larger table, however, you’ll need a little something more.

Try using a fireplace candelabra as the base for your centerpiece. Even though these fireplace accessories are generally used inside the fireplace, they can very versatile in helping to decorate your home. Try adding some garland and pine cones to add a little Christmas flare. You could simplify it even more by finding garland that already has some miniature Christmas lights embedded in it. A little bit of green and red ribbon would really add a special touch.

Have fun making your own get together with friends and family extra special this year.

Cast Iron Firebacks Can Increase Fireplace Efficiency

A classic American Eagle Fireback

I recently got a call from a customer asking about the efficiency gained from using a fireback. It seems there is a little bit of confusion out there.

 

The customer thought that the fireback would increase the amount of heat from the fire. In a way this is true, but let me explain it in a little more detail. A fireback is used to increase the amount of heat from your fireplace, but it does not make the fire hotter. The way it increases the heat is by absorbing the heat from the fire while it burns. Then, once the fire dies out, the fireback continhes to radiate the heat that it had absorbed from the fire back into the room for several more hours. This is why the cast iron fireback is such a popular fireplace accessory, because they have the ability to absorb a lot of heat.

So the efficiency gained from a fireback is not from the immediate heat output, but from the prolonged heat output over time. Hope that clears things up a bit.

Benefits of an Electric Fireplace Part 4 – Home Decor

A work of art that comes alive!

There are many options when it comes to decorating your home. A great way to add an extra sparkle without too much expense is using an electric fireplace. These versatile appliances can be plugged into any home outlet, and therefore can be placed anywhere you would like to add warmth and movement.

 

The design of these fireplaces has advanced considerably since the 60′s and 70′s. There are many styles and designs from which to choose. You can put them in a corner of a small office or even hang them on an entryway wall. If you love the idea of a fireplace in your master bedroom or in your master bathroom, but don’t think you have the extra room, the electric fireplace makes it possible with its smaller design and ventless construction.

The Fire Sense Black Wall Mounted Electric Fireplace, for example extends only 6 inches from the wall and comes with a remote control. You can hang this on your bedroom wall and start up the fire without leaving the comfort and warmth of your bed!

Benefits of an Electric Fireplace Part 3 – Home Safety

Fire Sense Vernon Electric Fireplace Stove

Having a wood burning fireplace or stove adds value to your home and is a great place to congregate during the cold winter months. However, these can cause a bit of home safety concern with their live flames. If you do not own a home with a real fireplace, and want to have a warm place to cozy up to, consider the electric fireplace.

 

The outside of an electric fireplace does not get hot, like a pellet or wood burning stove, but still provides the warmth and ambiance. Therefore nC you will not need to worry about your children getting burns if they accidentally touch it.

Even though some models create a very realistic looking flame, there is no real fire in an electric fireplace. You will not need to worry about the potential hazard of a fire from flying sparks or burning logs rolling out onto the hearth.

The Fire Sense Vernon Electric Fireplace Stove is one of the smallest models available and can be a great addition to any room without causing safety concerns. It will easily plug into any outlet and provide extra warmth as well as style. This model is even outfitted with a safety cut-off and adjustable thermostat.