How to Babyproof Fireplaces and Hearths in 2025
A cozy hearth is a welcoming spot in any home, but the fireplace and hearth areas can pose serious safety concerns for little ones. Here are simple ways to babyproof fireplaces and hearth areas to protect your tots, home, and family.
How to Babyproof Your Fireplace and Hearth Area
If your fireplace or woodstove receives heavy use during the winter, a mounted fireplace safety gate is a good choice to help protect little ones from the fire’s obvious dangers and the hearth’s hard surfaces. Fireplace gates surround the hearth area, and most styles have a handy adult-operated walkthrough gate. Fireplace tools, wood boxes, and natural gas valve keys can also be hazardous to children. Move these to less-accessible spots if the hearth area is not enclosed within a fireplace safety gate.
Hardware Mounted Baby Gate, 6-Panels, 30" Tall, Black
Ideal for:
- Babyproofing the Fireplace
- Creating a Play Area
- Limiting Baby's Access to the Kitchen or other Rooms
- A Walk-Through Pet Gate
Even without a burning fire, the hearth area can be a year-round danger to young children. If you don’t enclose the area with a gate, you can protect babies and toddlers from a raised hearth’s sharp corners and rough surfaces with padded hearth guards.
Child Safety Edge and Corner Guard for Hearth Areas
- Neutral Taupe
- 8.33 Ft of Padding
- Made in USA
Made of closed-cell foam, these bumpers easily attach to the hearth with removable adhesives and can prevent nasty bumps and cuts. But padded guards do not limit access to the fireplace itself. Make sure your fireplace has a sturdy screen, mounted if possible, and keep the screen closed and the fireplace clean of ashes and burned debris so curious hands and mouths stay soot-free!
More Fireplace and Hearth Safety Tips
Here are some simple things you can do to safely enjoy your fireplace, woodstove, and hearth areas and avoid hidden hazards.
Check Your Smoke Detectors & Have a Fire Extinguisher On-Hand
Be sure that your fire alarms and carbon monoxide detectors have new batteries and are operating properly. If you have not invested in a household fire extinguisher, now is the perfect time to do so—and to learn how to use it. Make it a pre-holiday gift to yourself and enjoy family fireside gatherings with added peace-of-mind.
Ideal for Home, Hearth, Car, Kitchen, and Boat
- Just Point, Press, and Spray
- Portable Extinguishing Aerosol Spray Compact A, B, C, K
- Includes Mounting Brackets for Easy Access.
Maintain a Clean & Safe Fireplace and Chimney
To ensure safe operation, fireplace and chimney systems should be inspected and cleaned each year – even in warmer climes where fireplace use is less frequent. Flammable creosote can build up on the chimney wall, and obstructions such as bird or animal nests can inhibit proper venting and possibly cause a chimney fire. Cracks or deterioration can also be a fire hazard and may even allow dangerous carbon monoxide to escape into the home. Professional chimney sweeps offer cleaning, inspection, and maintenance services, and the Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA) provides a list of certified “Sweeps” online at www.csia.org.
Enjoy Crackling Warmth – Safely!
Build a safe, inviting fire for your family with only seasoned hardwood or artificial firelogs, and never use charcoal lighter fluid or any other fluid such as gasoline to light – or relight – a fire. The vapors from even a slight amount of these fluids can cause a deadly explosion. If using newspaper as a fire starter, burn only the black ink sections as colored inks may release toxic fumes when burned. For this reason, never burn wrapping paper or other rubbish in a fireplace.
Be sure to build the appropriate size fire for your fireplace. A large fire may overheat the surrounding wall or roof materials and cause them to deteriorate or even ignite. Place logs toward the rear of the fireplace as this usually ensures a better draw of smoke up the chimney, and keep the damper open until the ashes are cool to minimize any buildup of deadly carbon monoxide.
