How To Build a Fireplace

I don’t mean washing it… I could figure that one out on my own, and I really don’t need to wash it anyways. I just mean removing all the YUK from it, after each fire. I tried doing it with a small dustpan set… WHAT A MESS. Ashes and soot were flying everywhere, not to mention that it made a disaster of the dustpan and brush. Then, I thought I had the best solution and used my wet/dry shop-vac. Yeah… this worked like a charm… BUT… the filter is so clogged now from the ashes… that it’s completely stopped working. So, how do I effectively clean my outdoor fireplace, the easiest way? And on that note… how do I clean the filter of my shop-vac
You can soak your filter in car wash and water. The next time you clean the fireplace, put a paper bag over the filter and hold it there with rubber bands. Now you can vacuum and when your done just throw out the paper bag.