safety matter: brooms!

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Black Jaque Janaviac

Black Jaque Janaviac

Feeling the Heat
Dec 17, 2009
451
Ouisconsin
I did a little googling and I can't really find any information on proper brooms for use around wood burning appliances.

Is it safe to assume that any broom that comes with those fireplace tool sets is flame resistant? In other words should a hot ember get caught up in the bristles it will not burst into flames while you are sleeping.

Then, I have a large area to sweep where this hazard is a real concern. Where can I get a larger broom that would be safe for this use?
 
Highly doubtful the brooms are fire resistant.
Better to use an ash scoop to scoop any embers up.
For normal sweeping of ash, wood debris, broom is fine.
Just make sure there are no embers mixed in.
 
The fireplace brooms are definitely combustible, don't know if anyone makes a broom fire resistant. Like HW said, best to scoop if hot, sweep when cool.
 
Invest in a good ash vacuum.
 
You don't want to vacuum up hot embers even in the best ash vac it can cause problems. There have been a few times we had to pull over and empty our soot master on the side of the road because we accidentally sucked up a hot coal and set the filter on fire.
 
Flame resistant or flame retardant (I forget which one) is not the same as non-combustable. They can treat cotton canvas so that it is flame resistant. Which is to say that if an ember or flame touches it, the canvas will burn through, but it won't burst into flames. If you can imagine a candle next to a tent wall, the candle flame will burn the treated canvas wherever the flame comes in contact with the canvas, but as soon as the hole enlarges so that it is far enough away from the heat source it will go out.

I thought those plastic bristled brooms are the same way. Maybe I'm wrong.

Would dipping the broom in a bucket of water be considered OK? Otherwise it seems like I would have to wait until spring to sweep. When you burn 24/7 it seems like spring would be the only time to be sure there's no hot embers.
 
Black Jaque Janaviac said:
Would dipping the broom in a bucket of water be considered OK?
Click to expand...

If the broom is all plastic or another water-resistant material I don't see why not.

I have to say that thought never occurred to me. We sweep the ashes/dust around our insert with a cheap 1" brush as it is easier to get into the nooks and crannies with it. I don't think I ever scooped up embers with it; thus I never considered whether it was flammable or not.
 
I really don't think this a real concern at all. I sweep around 2 stoves and a fireplace and have never once had an issue. I have intentionally swept up a coal pop on occasion, it melted a few bristles but was no where near bursting into flames.

Do you really have that many coals laying around on the hearth? I sure don't.
 
Yeah, about that flame resistant broom idea . . . let's just say that I think the folks that make these fireplace kits with the brooms expect you to only be using the broom to sweep up the wood chips, dust, etc. on the hearth and not sweeping up errant coals or too close to the hot stove. The broom with the one fireplace kit I have really isn't all that functional now . . . it's a bit difficult trying to sweep with a melted gob of plastic instead of bristles. ;)
 
I'm trying to figure this out now myself.

There's a firefighters' broom. Perfex 1304 on amazon. Looks like the same thing by different names googling for 'firefighters broom.' Says it's made of fire resistant palmyra fibers. I wonder whether palmyra brushes are fire resistant or if these are specially treated. One site also says to dip it in water first to maximize life.

You could also get a wire brush. That is probably the safest bet.
 
I've been using this brush for 7 years. It was with the fireplace tools when we bought the house, so I assume it was used as a fireplace brush for many years before me.
It has a few bristle boogers from brushing ashes back into the stove around the door, but other than that, it has never combusted.
002.JPG
If you feel uneasy having a broom that might burn, maybe you could keep it in a small metal bucket.
 
bsruther said:
I've been using this brush for 7 years. It was with the fireplace tools when we bought the house, so I assume it was used as a fireplace brush for many years before me.
It has a few bristle boogers from brushing ashes back into the stove around the door, but other than that, it has never combusted.
View attachment 143813
If you feel uneasy having a broom that might burn, maybe you could keep it in a small metal bucket.
Click to expand...
Round here we call that a PAINT BRUSH.;lol;lol:p
 
bsruther said:
You know, that's what we call them here too. Oh but this is no ordinary paint brush. It has ancient text inscribed on it...MADE IN USA.
Click to expand...
yah, its ancient!! lol that was a good one man.

i use a large newer paint brush, (made in a 3rd world country by a starving individual..) they go to crap pretty quick on SUPER hot surfaces..lol
 
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