Outdoor Fireplace's and Safety

An outdoor fireplace can be fun for the whole family and also an excellent setting for outdoor entertaining.

However, you should always keep safety in mind whenever an outdoor fireplace is in use so that a ‘good time’ doesn’t become a ‘tragic one’ instead.

A screen should be used to keep sparks from jumping out of the fireplace. Stray sparks could land on someone and cause painful and serious burns, or land on the roof of the house and cause the roof to catch fire.

When cooking with an outdoor fireplace care should be taken to avoid injuries. Make sure to use skewers that are at least 6 in. or more in length when roasting marshmallows and wieners to keep everyone at a safe distance from the heat and flames of the fire in the fireplace. Remember to caution against immediately biting into food that has been cooked over a fire. The food may be cool to the touch while the internal temperature could be hot enough to cause an injury to the mouth if eaten too soon. Better to let the food cool for a few minutes before eating.

Children should be supervised at all times when an outdoor fireplace is in use. Children should also be cautioned against horseplay around the fireplace to prevent falling into the fire if your outdoor fireplace is a bowl or ring shape or bumping- up against the very hot surfaces in other outdoor fireplace designs. Children should never be allowed to “play” with the fire in the fireplace with sticks. A child could set themselves on fire or drop a stick on the ground and catch the nearby grass on fire. All children should be taught the stop-drop-and roll method of putting out a fire should their clothes happen to catch on fire.

You should never wear clothing that has strings or anything that hangs from the clothing whenever you’re near an outdoor fireplace. A string from a jacket could fall into the fire “unnoticed” and set your clothing on fire. The furniture used around an outdoor fireplace should be made of fire-resistant materials to prevent them from catching on fire should a stray spark escape from the fireplace.

By observing these and other rules of safety, an outdoor fireplace can be a wonderful addition to your backyard that the whole family can enjoy. Be safe and have fun with your outdoor fireplace.

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