Fireplace Safety - Don't Burn Pine!
I thought it was common knowledge that you don't want to burn soft woods like pine in an indoor wood stove or fireplace, but my wife didn't know when we first met, so obviously this knowledge could still use some spreading. Perhaps some lives could be saved somewhere.
Softwood is less dense than hardwoods like oak and maple, and produces less heat. It also burns quickly, and combustion of the wood isn't as complete, resulting in greatly increased creosote buildup on the inside of the chimney. Creosote is highly flammable, and can easily ignite and start a chimney fire that can quickly get out of hand.
Creosote chimney-fires,besides destroying the chimney/ mantle, are a very common cause of homes being burned down. This is why it is so important to clean out your chimney every year, or hire a chimney sweep service, even if you only burn hardwood. Of course, if you have one of those outdoor woodburners that is connected via pipe into your house, burn whatever you want!
You might get lucky and hire this guy!
The drier firewoods get,the better they seem to burn.
When the sap is burned it creates tarry smoke that can coat the inside of a fireplace causing a possible fire hazard The buildup of deposits left on your chimney is called creosote and it is deposited through wood smoke It builds up naturally in your chimney