Stains from soot and smoke are a common problem on the surround around a wood-burning fireplace.

To remove black stains around a fireplace, use a strong degreaser, such as trisodium phosphate (TSP), which is available at home centers and hardware stores.

To remove soot and smoke stains:

  1. Make a paste from TSP and water.
  2. Apply the paste to a sponge, and use it to scrub the black stains.
  3. Rinse the sponge thoroughly, and remove any residue with clean water.

Since brick is more porous, you may need to apply the TSP paste with a scrub brush when cleaning a brick surround.

Watch the video above to learn more.

VIDEO TRANSCRIPT

Danny Lipford: Joanna writes to us: “How can I clean the soot and smoke off the face of my fireplace?”

You know, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a fireplace surround that didn’t have at least a little bit of smoke and soot somewhere on the face of the fireplace.

Now, basically, it’s just grease, so you need a good degreaser in order to clean this up. And one of the best degreasers I’ve ever found is TSP or trisodium phosphate.

Now, to apply this powder onto a vertical surface would be really hard. And if you try to spray any kind of cleaner on it, it will run right down. So what I’m going to do is make this simple paste by adding just a little bit of water to the TSP.

And using the same sponge, we’ll just apply this like that and come back with a more abrasive side of the sponge, and you can see it does a great job in cleaning all of that off.

And you’ll want a good, clean sponge to make sure you’re getting rid of all of the residue. Of course, cleaning ceramic tiles like this is fairly easy, because it has a glaze.

But if you have brick on your fireplace surround, then you’ll need to be a little more aggressive. The paste will work well, but you may need one of these.


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Danny Lipford

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Danny Lipford is a home improvement expert and television personality who started his remodeling business, Lipford Construction, at the age of 21 in Mobile, Alabama. He gained national recognition as the host of the nationally syndicated television show, Today's Homeowner with Danny Lipford, which started as a small cable show in Mobile. Danny's expertise in home improvement has also led him to be a contributor to popular magazines and websites and the go-to source for advice on everything related to the home. He has made over 200 national television appearances and served as the home improvement expert for CBS's The Early Show and The Weather Channel for over a decade. Danny is also the founder of 3 Echoes Content Studio, TodaysHomeowner.com, and Checking In With Chelsea, a décor and lifestyle blog.

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