Chimney fires

The Jeremy Vine show on Radio Two had a feature earlier this week about a spate of chimney fires in Devon. They may sound innocuous but can be really frightening with flames shooting out of the top of the chimney and lots of smoke and noise - and they can cause serious damage to your home.  If your chimney is on fire, the advice is to call the fire brigade right away.

There are some things you can do to help prevent chimney fires and one of the most important is to ensure you have your chimney regularly swept - a build up of soot and deposits in the chimney is a common cause of fires.  You may also be surprised to learn that burning unseasoned (or damp) wood can be an issue.  Wood sold on garage forecourts is often unseasoned and it doesn't burn well.

At Westcombes, we recommend using a qualified chimney sweep and we have local sweeps who are members of the National Association of Chimney Sweeps to keep your chimney clear - and we sell fantastic kiln-dried wood.