Fireplace Maintenance for Your Rental Property

Easy Fireplace Maintenance

If there is a fireplace in your rental property, your tenants might get the itch to begin firing it up as autumn temperatures start dropping. Whether they use their fireplaces occasionally to provide warmth on cooler nights or they always enjoy having flames in their hearth during fall and winter, you should learn basic fireplace maintenance before your tenants light the first fire of the season. Fireplace maintenance is vital to keep your rental property’s fireplace looking good and functioning properly, but it doesn’t have to be a chore–here are three easy steps to help you with fireplace maintenance for your rental property!

Check for Buildup

Your fireplace maintenance routine should include checking for substance buildup in the interior and the chimney of your rental property’s fireplace. When wood doesn’t burn completely, flammable substances like creosote and soot will accumulate. This could cause a fire to burn out of control.

You can clean out soot and creosote buildup with Tri-Sodium Phosphate, a stiff brush, and gloves and goggles for your protection. Check with your property management group before undertaking this task yourself, as they may require (or even pay for) a professional cleaner to come in and perform the fireplace maintenance.

Check for Blockages

Another important element of fireplace maintenance is checking for blockages that can back-up the chimney and make smoke pervade your renters’ home. As the temperatures drop, it’s not only your renters looking to your fireplace for warmth–critters might take up residence in your rental property’s chimney to protect themselves from the chill. Falling leaves may also be the culprit of a blocked chimney.

It’s quite easy to check this task off your fireplace maintenance list; simply use a flashlight to see if there’s an obstruction in your chimney. If there is, contact your property management group to see if they have a professional chimney cleaner to recommend. Cleaning chimney blockages is a difficult part of fireplace maintenance and should only be conducted by trained professionals.

Clean Your Firebox

The last bit of fireplace maintenance you should do before your renters light up their firewood? Clean the firebox. The high heat of the fire should keep the firebox relatively clean, but some debris may be left behind. Simply sweep the remainder into a pile and vacuum it up. Next, use a stiff-bristle brush to scrub the firebox walls very gently, as fireplace brick easily crumbles.

Now your renters are ready to build the first fire of the season! To keep dust and soot from building up around the hearth, encourage your renters to vacuum and dust it weekly if it is frequently used. Only use the vacuum once the embers have been cold for 12 hours.

Wishing your rental property had a fireplace for you to cozy up in front of? Call National Property Management Group of Kansas City at (913) 766-2191 EXT. 2 to find a place for you.