Have an Indoor Fireplace Do NOT proceed to build a fire if you do not have an indoor fireplace. If you have one, read on.

Previously on the Gentleman’s Guide we explained how to build a fire in the great outdoors . With the mercury so low, it’s now time to turn our sights inside. Indoor fire-crafting requires some skills and techniques from the outdoor practices, but it also comes with its own intricacies. This article will teach you the ins, outs, ups, downs, and otherworldy motions in dimensions unfathomable of building a roaring fire in your home’s fireplace to match the love for the holidays burning in your chest. You know the feeling, the one you get after eating your weight worth of the Swedish meatballs that John always brings to parties.

Clean Your Fireplace and Chimney

When was the last time you cleaned your fireplace? I thought so… Soot and creosote (sticky tar made by fires that is great at making even more fires) can build up in your chimney over time and cause chimney fires. Now a chimney doesn’t sound like the worst place to have a fire, but trust me, they can and WILL spread to the rest of your house and ruin your Christmas. Without a roof, Santa will be forced to land in your bedroom, and it takes forever to get reindeer stink out of the carpet. Trust us.

If you have not cleaned your fireplace and chimney recently, you are running out of time. Not only are you missing out on opportunities to have toasty fires each evening that you have not cleaned them, but you are wasting the last few days of the year that you’d be willing to expose your fingers to the elements long enough to brush and shovel any gunk outta there.

Chimney cleaning logs may help, but there are only three safe ways to clean out your chimney that ensure peace of mind while enjoying your cozy abode. You can 1) meet someone, hit it off, date, get married, have a kid, cover said kid in bristle pads, tie a rope around their waist and lower them down and hoist them up the chimney repeatedly; 2) pay for a $50 chimney cleaning kit or; 3) hire a professional.