How to Make a Hot Fire in a Fireplace

A hot fireplace is toasty and romantic.

When you have a fireplace in your home, you don't have to rely on electricity or natural gas to heat your home. These resources are expensive, anyway. When you use a fireplace to heat your home, it not only saves money but also provides your living environment with a calming, romantic ambiance. Knowing how to make a hot fire in a fireplace isn't very difficult at all, but safety is key.

Things You'll Need

• Kindling
• Firewood
• Ash bucket
• Fireplace utensils
• Long matches

Instructions

1. Place a 1-inch layer of kindling on the floor of the fireplace beneath the fireplace rack. Kindling can be small wood chips, twigs or crumpled-up newspaper. If there are ashes and debris in the fireplace, clean it out using an ash bucket and shovel.

2. Stack three or four small- to medium-sized logs on top of the wood rack. If there isn't a wood rack, stack them on the floor of the fireplace on top of the kindling.

3. Strike a long fireplace match and apply the flame to several different areas of kindling. The kindling should ignite and flames should appear to eventually light the wood logs. Keep the fireplace open so the fire can breathe during this time.

4. Allow the logs to burn until they begin to glow brightly and break apart. Use a fireplace poker, which comes in any standard fireplace utensil kit, to break apart the glowing logs. This creates a bed of smoldering, hot coals.

5. Lay two or three more logs of medium size on top of the smoldering embers. These hot glowing wood coals will ignite the logs and burn even hotter in your environment. Close the gate or screen on your fireplace and enjoy the warmth.

References

• University of Illinois: Fireplace Safety