Picture the scene: it’s really cold outside and all you want to do is get your fire lit quickly to enjoy some natural heat. But as you go to light it with your collection of paper, matches and chemical firelights, you are faced with a billow of black smoke blown back into the room. Your fire may take ages to get going after this and all you want is to cosy up by a fire. This article looks at some of the common reason why you might get smoke blowback and advise on how to overcome it.

Smoke blowback is caused by a variety of reasons: it could be caused by downdraft from the chimney when the wind changes direction, but the most common reason is that the flue is too cold and needs hot air blowing through it before it can light the fuel. This can frequently happen at the start of the winter season, particularly if you have not been using your fire for a long period.

Traditional firelighting methods such as paper, matches and chemical firelighters don’t heat up the flue very effectively and can cause the fire to ‘slumber’ before it eventually reaches peak temperature. This can cause smoke blowback and it can take a while before you even get any decent flames.

In addition to lighting the fire the Grenadier Electric Firelighter can be used to pre-warm problem flues by directing the super-heated air to the side or above the fuel prior to lighting the fire.

The Grenadier Electric firelighter is the powerful and modern-day method of lighting a fire. By directing concentrated heat directly onto the fuel from a built-in fan, the fuel  reaches burning point far quicker. The Grenadier also acts as bellows to spread the fire through the fire bed at a fast rate, so that the fire reaches optimum temperature quicker.

It comes with a versatile stand, and thanks to its unsurpassed safety record, you can relax in the knowledge that this device is a safe and efficient way to light your fire and avoid smoke blowback.

For more information about the Grenadier and it’s benefits, visit: https://grenadier.co.uk/product/grenadier-electric-firelighter