Cooking should be done over glowing coals, as flames and smoke smudge
the utensils or even the food. When the wood is nearly charred, most of
the smoke has been driven off and the chimney is hot enough to draw the
smoke up the flue. All fires should be banked before they are left, to
avoid setting fires. Banking can be safely and effectively done by raking
the coals and unconsumed fuel into a pile on the hearth and covering the
pile with a few inches of earth. Water thrown on a hot fire may result in
scalds from the steam and may crack the fireplace.