A fire burning in a brown outdoor fireplace

Our Guidelines

Our products are designed to require very little maintenance. It is important that you follow our guidelines for good practice on lighting a fire, however a lot comes with a common-sense approach.

Burning the wrong wood will lead to a lot of issues and will involve the need for much more maintenance.

So, by burning the correct wood, you are on the home straight to simple enjoyment of your product.

The chimney

  • We advise that there is just really one important requirement, in terms of maintenance, which is to clean the chimney.

  • Just like a household fireplace, a soot blocked up chimney could lead to a fire, so all our fireplaces are designed for the chimney to be removed by unscrewing the bolts and giving you the access to clean and remove any excess soot from the chimney.

  • We would recommend that this be done at least once a year, however if you are using the fireplace a lot then there may be a requirement for you to do this more than once in a year.

The glass

  • On occasion, your glass might need cleaning as soot has clung to the glass and reduced the clarity of the glass.

  • This sometimes happens from burning wet wood or from closing the fire down too quickly. Glass should only be cleaned when it is completely cold, and we recommend using a paper towel. If the glass is particularly dirty, then some warm, soapy water can be used to remove build-up of soot, make sure that you dry off the glass to avoid smearing.

  • The glass panels are designed to be removable, in case of damage caused by negligence. It is not a requirement to take the glass out to clean it, however a competent DIY’er can remove the glass if required for a thorough once a year clean. The glass is attached using bolts and is very simple to take out and re-install.

The fire chamber

  • It is always advisable to clean out the fire chamber, once completely cold, of all the contents of a previous burn.

  • This can be done using a sweeping brush and dustpan. If you do not do this, then you will just have a very smoky burn by putting new wood on top of charcoal and you will soot up the chimney and glass much quicker.

Corten fireplaces

  • Corten fireplaces should not be cleaned with any cleaning agent whatsoever.

  • The beauty of corten (the aged / rusty material) is that it has a natural patina that changes according to the climatic conditions of where it is sited. It is perfectly normal for the corten products to change colour over time, to sometimes become scaly and shed a top layer of material just like a snake shedding a skin.

  • We advise occasionally brushing the product with a wire brush to remove soot or scale and then leave the rest to the elements. All corten products are really simple to look after, they are great for those with little time to think about maintenance and for those who just want to use and forget.

Black finish fireplaces

  • All Black painted products require some maintenance.

    In most normal circumstances the fireplace will not need much maintenance other than a wipe down with a damp cloth.

  • The chimney still needs cleaning once a year, like the corten products, and the glass works exactly the same as the corten products and needs cleaning once in a while.

    We advise that the painted finish because of the nature of the product, getting extremely hot and then cold and being kept outside will overtime dull and take on a natural patina dependent on frequency of use and climatic conditions.

  • We advise that the painted finish is cleaned now and again with some warm soapy water and dried off with a micro fibre cloth. The paint finish, if compromised, should be touched up with touch up paint that can be purchased from L’Bode luxury directly.

Live by the coast?

  • We do not advise that a painted product is bought if you are within 5 miles of the coast, as the product is likely to corrode, and corten would be much more advisable.

  • If you live near the coast and leave the fireplace out all year you could expect to see corrosion much more quickly than say a location central to the country.

Final words

  • Other than that, our products are designed and manufactured to be used and enjoyed.

  • They are designed with an emphasis on the owner having to do very little to keep them in good order but by following the common-sense maintenance advised you can enjoy your fireplace for years to come.

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