How to: Clean a brick fireplace.
Flamecraft • 7 December 2018
A guide to keeping your brick fireplace looking its best.
Brick fireplaces are classic and still popular today. They are durable and have a rustic charm. However, as with all fireplaces, even those made of brick need looking after if you want to keep it looking its best.
Take a moment for a quick sweep to save time later.
While durable and generally easy to care for we still recommend a quick clean to keep dust and debris to a minimum. As with every fireplace, how often you use your fire will affect how often we recommend a quick clean up. If you use your fire daily, then we recommend quickly sweeping up or hoovering before every use. For those who only light their fire occasionally, then a quick clean up the day after use is recommended.
You will need;
- A soft brush.
- A dustpan.
- A hoover with a brush adapter.
Dry Cleaning:
- Sweep any dust or debris using a soft brush.
- Hoover up and hard to reach dust and debris using
the brush adapter.
As with every type of fireplace, a quick clean up with every use will reduce the build-up of dust, dirt and debris, which will save you time later.
A weekly clean will prevent problems later.
Even with a
regular quick clean up, build ups of dirt and debris will happen eventually. It
is better to prevent heavy build-ups by
doing a more thorough clean.
You will need:
- A bucket.
- A non-abrasive cloth.
- A mild washing up liquid.
- A dry cloth/towel.
We advise the following routine;
- Put a few drops of washing up liquid into a bucket of hot water.
- Wipe down hearth with a soapy solution.
- Empty bucket and refill with clean warm water (no soap this time.)
- Then wipe down again with clean warm water, leaving no soapy residue behind.
- Gently wipe/pat down with a dry cloth.
- Allow drying overnight before using any additional cleaners or polishing.
We say weekly cleaning, however, as with every surround, it depends on how often you use your fire.
- If you use your fire more than three days a week, we advise doing the above weekly.
- If you use your fire less than three days a week then we advise doing the above two-weekly to monthly.
Deep cleaning.
Deep cleaning
is a highly recommended form of preventative maintenance. Below we have listed
the stages involved with deep cleaning. While you may not have to follow all
steps every time, depending on how often you perform
a deep clean, we recommend doing this at least once a year, regardless of how
often you use your fire. It is usually
best to do this at the start of the summer season, so your fire looks its best even
while not in use.
For deep cleaning you will need;
- Bucket
- Cloth
- Heavy duty brush – firm spines.
- Fireplace cleaner – please ensure it is suitable for use on brickwork.
- Gloves – fireplace cleaners usually require you to protect your skin.
- Old sheets/dust covers to protect your carpets/furniture
Before starting a deep clean please do the following;
- Sweep/Hoover and dust and debris from around the fireplace.
- Clean the fireplace with soapy water solution (Follow instructions above.) and ensure fireplace is dry before starting a deep clean.
- Before proceeding to the deep cleaning routine, please ensure areas around the fireplace are covered with a protective layer.
- Ensure you have and are wearing the protective
equipment recommended by the cleaner.
Deep Cleaning;
- Scrub brickwork with a firm brush, this can be done either dry or wet.
- Follow instructions on your fireplace cleaner as directions can vary.
- Repeat as necessary.
Sealing.
Brickwork
fireplaces can be sealed using a brick and stone sealer. This will help to
protect the brickwork from staining and make it easier to clean. However, sealants
can change the natural colour of brick and stone. They usually make them
darker.
When sealing we recommend;
- It is best to seal after a deep clean. This is because the brickwork will be as clean as possible and will avoid sealing stains and marks into the brickwork.
- Use a sealant that is designed for brickwork fireplaces and follow the manufactures instructions.
If you follow our advice and still find you are having issues with stubborn marks, please contact our showroom and one of our team will be happy to advise you.
WARNINGS:
- Sealing can change the colour of the brick.
- If stains & markings persist after deep cleaning, please contact the showroom and we will advise how to proceed. Do not apply a sealant as this can seal the stain into the brick.
- Due to brickwork being porous liquid spillages can soak in and stain bricks, all liquid should be cleaned off as soon as possible to avoid this.
We all made it through second lockdown and are pleased to be open to the general public once more. We welcome customers to come visit us, but kindly ask they adhere to the government guidelines regarding social distancing. While we understand lockdown was frustrating, we are in a tier 3 area and therefore we also ask that our customers shop responsibly and only come into the showroom for essential purposes when possible. We are still able to take orders for stove spares over phone and email and in many cases out manufacturers will deliver these directly to our customers to help us to reduce the need for people to put themselves at risk of Covid-19. We know we sound like we are lecturing, however we want to ensure all our customers have a very happy and healthy Christmas. With all this in mind, we have reduced the hours the showroom will be open. We will review these regularly and open for longer if needed, we are also able to arrange appointments to visit the showroom at Baytree outside these hours, Our December opening hours are as follows: Monday: CLOSED (Pre-booked appointments available) Tuesday: CLOSED (Pre-booked appointments available) Wednesday: CLOSED (Pre-booked appointments available) Thursday: 10am - 2pm (Pre-booked appointments available till 5pm) Friday: 10am - 2pm (Pre-booked appointments available till 5pm) Saturday: 10am - 5pm Sunday: 10am - 4pm We kindly ask when pre-booking appointments Monday - Wednesday that customers give 24 hours notice and Pre-booked appointments are available between 10am - 5pm. On Thursdays and Fridays appointments can be pre-booked on the day before 1:30pm via calling 01406 373600. We are available via emailing flamecraftuk@aol.com outside our opening hours and will try to reply to customers as quickly as possible.
With second lockdown looming many of our customers are concerned about being able to purchase fuel and spare parts during second lockdown. We completely understand this and whilst our showroom wont be open to the general public we are running a 'Call & Collect' service.
In October we teased that we were going to expand our range of wood burning and multi fuels stoves to give our customers a bigger range of Ecodesign Approved stoves that would suit a range of budgets, and we are excited to finally be able to introduce our two new brands to you.
The clearskies scheme has been recently introduced, and many of the wood burners and multi fuel stoves we sell have a clear skies mark. However many of our customers see this logo and are left wondering what it actually means. Therefore we have put together the basics explaining what clear skies is, and how this potentially will effect choosing a wood burner or multi fuel stove.
EcoDesign 2022 is changes to regulations for the Stove Industry.
It is the season for hot chocolate, fluffy blankets, hot water bottles and curling up in front of a roaring fire. With the days getting sorter and the nights getting longer it means we are busy installing wood burning and multi fuel stoves in homes. Like for many this year has been challenging, and we have worked tirelessly to ensure our customers will still receive the best service possible from us. We also understand that with the challenges of the past year many of us we are looking for more affordable heating options for this winter. Over the summer we have had many discussions about the issues we are all facing, and we knew we wanted to do everything we could to ensure our customers can still enjoy owning a wood burner or multi fuel stove. On top of the challenges this year has brought us all we are also very aware that since the announcement of the incoming Ecodesign regulations more and more of our customers are coming to us looking for Ecodesign 2022 Approved wood burners and multi fuel stoves. While we had Ecodesign stoves available, we wanted to give our customers more options to choose from. So, we knew we had two targets: 1. Have wood burning and multi fuels stove options available for a range of different budgets. 2. Expand our range of Ecodesign Approved stoves. We went through many different ideas until we finally realised the solution was in front of us (literally in a pile of brochures we had from a trade show we visited last year). A manufacturer that had a huge range of Ecodesign 2022 approved wood burning and multi fuel stoves that meet our own guidelines for quality and design (as well as being manufactured in the UK), and to top that off offering a range of price points that would allow us to offer more affordable stoves. So of course we gave them a call.
With the cold weather rolling in we are extending our opening hours to the following: Monday: CLOSED Tuesday: CLOSED Wednesday: 10am - 5pm Thursday: 10am - 5pm Friday: 10am - 5pm Saturday: 10am - 5pm Sunday: 10 - 4pm We look forward to seeing you.
Everyone has their own style and taste, and they develop and change over time. In recent years our customers are coming to us wanting more sleek and contemporary designs that allow for a full view of the flames within a wood burner or multi fuel stove. We have put together a selection of stoves that have been designed for modern living with a contemporary aesthetic. Every wood burner and multi fuel stove on this list are Ecodesign 2022 approved.
Inheriting a wood burner or multi fuel stove can be confusing, but we have put together a checklist of the things you should know when buying a house with a wood burner or multi fuel stove already installed.
We are open again and ready to welcome customers back into our showroom. However following government guidelines and to keep our team and customers safe we kindly ask customers to adhere to the following: When visiting please follow Baytree Garden Centre's one way system. Due to the width of our showroom and the positioning of our doors we are only able to accommodate one household at a time whilst adhering to social distancing. We are unable to ensure that there is a 2 meter distance between households due to our built in displays which allow for less than a 2 meter gap between them. Therefore we may politely ask customers to wait outside with a 2 meter distance from the door if we are already serving a household in the showroom, or return later. Please sanitise you hands upon entering the showroom. We are doing our best to sanitise the door handles, card machine and any handles on the stoves between customers. We kindly ask customers are patient with us as during busy periods they may be asked to refrain from touching the handles on the stoves until they are sanitised. We politely ask that you speak to a member of the team before touching any accessories or care products in the showroom, as this will allow our team to sanitise the products to ensure they are safe for the next customer to handle. Update: We kindly ask you wear an appropriate face mask/covering when visiting our showroom. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and thank you for your patience at this challenging time.