Your home’s fireplace can be the most beautiful and romantic part of your home while also being one of the most popular places to gather, entertain, and relax after a long day of work. And with Valentine’s Day right around the corner, more and more homeowners are planning on spending a soothing, seductive night in front of the fire. But in order to keep your night as amazing as you have planned your fireplace needs some simple maintenance to keep Valentine’s perfect!

Schedule Professional Cleaning and Inspections

As a general safety rule, homeowners with fireplaces should have their fireplace and chimney professionally inspected and cleaned at least once a year. No matter how often your fireplace is used, dangerous conditions can develop throughout the year including everything from creosote build-up to animal infestation, conditions which can only effectively be resolved with the help of professional fireplace and chimney cleaning contractors. While there are many projects which homeowners can be a bit lenient about, fireplace and chimney cleaning and repairs are specialized services which demand as prompt a response as possible to ensure the beauty and functionality of your home is upheld.

Always Control Air Quality

Once your chimney and fireplace are properly and thoroughly cleaned homeowners still need to be careful about taking care of the air pollutants which are naturally kicked up simply by enjoying a warm, crackling fire. If your home is still using a traditional wood-burning fireplace as opposed to the safer and more modern gas-burning option, there are still a number of different options available to you to keep inhalation of things like carbon monoxide from endangering the health of your family. Beyond this maintenance, homeowners can look into a variety of EPA certified fireplace inserts which help to greatly reduce the amount of air pollutants in your home without having to sacrifice the beauty and warmth of sitting by the fire.

Reserve Your Fireplace for Special Occasions

While there are a number of ways to improve your fireplace’s safety and efficiency, it’s still highly advisable for homeowners to avoid using their fireplace as their main source for home heating since extended usage can quickly wear away at the quality of the fireplace, the chimney, and the air in your home no matter what precautions you have in place. That said, using a properly maintained fireplace as an auxiliary heating source is an excellent way to lower your energy bills and increase your home’s beauty and property value. What’s more, keeping your fireplace aside for special occasions like Valentine’s Day evening make those intimate moments together by the fire all the more magical.