9 items banned from fireplaces in Idaho

We don’t know about you, but we really don’t like this “going to work in the dark and coming home from work in the dark” thing. If you’ve spent most of the day in an office or room with very little natural sunlight, walking into the bitterly cold parking lot in the dark can feel devastating.

The one thing that can instantly lift your mood as soon as you walk in the door? The smell of burning wood and the pleasant crackling and banging from the fireplace. Something about drinking warm cider while wearing cozy pajamas by the fire just makes this dark, cold time of year a little less dreary.

READ MORE: 7 Things Idahoans Should Remove From Their Wallets ASAP

Your fireplace is NOT a personal incinerator

Of course, when the temperature outside is 25°C, the last thing you want to do is bundle up and haul the trash to the curb. When the fire is blazing in the living room, it can be tempting to throw out some of your household trash along with the logs you picked up from Albertsons. The Idaho Department of Environmental Quality says you should NEVER do that.

They’re not saying this is a buzzkill. They say this because many of the things you think are safe to burn actually give off toxic fumes at high temperatures, making them a danger to you and your family. Others can cause the fire to burn out of control and cause a dangerous chimney fire.

That’s why we’ve put together a list of some items that you might think are safe to burn, but aren’t. Here’s what the experts say Idahoans should NEVER light their fireplace.