01/30/2026
With all the winter weather this last week many people have been utilizing additional heat sources, often their fireplace or wood stove. Unfortunately, there have also been several fire incidents caused by the improper disposal of ashes. Please remember the following guidelines when clearing out your fireplace or woodstove:
- Allow ashes to COOL completely before disposing of them. Four days or 96 hours is the minimum recommended cooling period for ashes.
- Place completely cooled ashes in a covered metal container. Keep the container at least 10 feet away from the home and other buildings. They should NEVER be disposed of in a plastic garbage box or can, a cardboard box or paper grocery bag. Never use a vacuum cleaner to pick up ashes.
- It is not wise to dump the ashes out in the yard, especially with the winds we have been having recently. Just a slight breeze can grab an ember and carry it to flammable materials: woodpiles, leaves, mulch, siding on your house.....
- The metal container should be placed away from anything flammable. It should not be placed next to a firewood pile, up against or in the garage, on or under a wood deck, or under a porch.
- After sitting for a week in the metal container, check them again to be sure they are cool. If so, the ashes are then safe to dispose of in your trash.
Also please remember:
- As a safety precaution keep anything that can burn (including piles of fire wood and newspapers) at least three feet away from a fireplace, wood stove, or any other heating appliance, and create a three-foot “kid-free zone” around an open fire.
- It is important to make sure the fireplace has a sturdy screen to stop sparks from flying, and never leave a fire unattended, particularly when children are present.
