CLEAN THAT FIREPLACE! - It’s getting to that time of year when we face the “big-clean” on that fireplace that’s been working so hard all winter. There’s nothing like looking into a spotless fireplace for the spring and we’re here to show you how.

First order of business is to move everything around the base of the fire out of the way and put down some sheets to protect the surrounding carpet. Once that’s done, carefully remove the grate so that you can clean it seperately by wiping it with a damp cloth and letting it dry.

Get out your vacuum (an old one if you have it as you’ll have to change the filter in a new one after this) and suck up as much debris and ash as you can – inside, on the bottom and on the walls of the fire. For the fine soot that still remains, use a dew damp cloths to wipe away.

Next, with a handled scrub brush and a bucket of warm water with detergent (a squirt or two per gallon of water), scrub the inside floor, followed by the sides — doing one small spot at a time and rinsing before moving on. Finally, rinse the whole lot with water and a sponge and wipe dry with an old towel. We really do recommend hiring a chimney cleaner once a year.

You can find on on www.PigSty.ie… Just select “chimney cleaning” from the dropdown menu and enter where you live. Let PigSty.ie do the rest!