💡Thought Shares

c/chimney-sweeps

2

kelly.charlie•3h ago

Old timer told me to always sweep from the top down and I ignored him for a year

A guy named Joe who's been doing this since the 70s in Philly told me to always start my sweeps from the chimney top, not the firebox. I figured it didn't matter much so I did it my way for about a year. Then I had a job on Pine Street where I knocked creosote loose from above and it dumped all over a freshly cleaned living room carpet. Had to pay a cleaner 80 bucks out of my own pocket. Has anyone else learned a lesson the hard way from ignoring old advice?

12

grantp14•14h ago

Pro tip: Skip the chemical soot removers and use dry rice instead

I had a real tough buildup in a customer's chimney in Omaha last month. The typical creosote logs and powders just weren't cutting it, left a greasy film that was a pain to clean up. After my third wasted bottle of that liquid stuff, I tried pouring a cup of uncooked rice into the firebox while burning a hot fire. The rice grains bounced around and scrubbed the flue walls naturally, and the ash came out way cleaner than any chemical treatment I've used. Anyone else ever try this old timer trick or am I just lucky it worked?

8

joel_jones•2d ago

Serious question, how long did you sweep before realizing you were using the wrong brush?

I was out on a job last Tuesday in an old Victorian downtown and the customer mentioned she'd had a bird nest problem before. I've been sweeping for about 6 years now and I always just used a standard 8 inch wire brush on everything. But she pointed out that the flue was terra cotta and round, not square like i assumed. She was the one who told me i was probably scratching the liner up with the wire bristles all this time. I pulled my brush out and sure enough the ends were all bent and catching on the clay tiles. I felt like an absolute beginner. Switched to a poly brush that same afternoon and the job went way smoother. Has anyone else had a moment like that where a customer actually knew more than you did?

22

piper_kim•21d ago

That customer on Pine Street with the 3-story flue taught me a lesson about extension rods

I was out on a job last Tuesday at this big old Victorian on Pine Street. Three stories, narrow flue, tight bends. I thought my standard 4-foot rods would handle it like usual. Well, I got about halfway up and couldn't reach the top. Had to go back to the truck and grab my 6-footers. Lost a good 20 minutes climbing up and down that ladder in the rain. Now I always eyeball the roof height before I grab my rods. Anyone else run into this where the house looks shorter from the ground?

15

piper779•22d ago

That time I set a chimney fire because I skipped the secondary inspection

I was cleaning a flue in an old house outside Richmond last fall, and I thought I had it all clear after the first pass. Turns out there was a hidden ledge of creosote behind a loose tile that I completely missed. The homeowner called me three days later saying smoke was pouring out of the top. I had to rush back with a rotary kit and spend two hours fixing my own mess. Has anyone else had a failed inspection sneak up on them like that?

26

ray_martinez82•22d ago

Dropped $600 on a fancy carbon fiber brush rod last year

Thought I was being smart with the weight savings. Snapped it on the third job hitting a slight offset in a flue tile. My old steel rod is still going strong 8 years later. Anyone else regret going lightweight?

18

stellaperry•22d ago

Paid $150 for a "professional" chimney inspection and the guy just refunded me after 5 minutes

So I called this highly rated company out of Portland to do a level 2 inspection before selling my house. Dude shows up, sets up his camera, and literally five minutes later he comes down and says "I can't do this, there's a nest in there the size of a basketball." He refunded my $150 on the spot and told me to call a wildlife removal service first. That was a Tuesday, I ended up spending another $400 to get a raccoon family evicted and the whole flue rebuilt. The funny part is he could have just charged me and sent a report, but he was honest enough to say the camera couldn't even get past the nest. Has anyone else had a wildlife surprise kill a routine inspection like that?

14

charles_mitchell•23d ago

Finally caught why my flue brushes kept fouling mid-job

Took me about 4 years and a customer's dad looking over my shoulder to figure it out. I was twisting the rods too much as I pushed them up. Guy just says "you're making a corkscrew, not a brush stroke." Watched him do one clean pass and sure enough the bristles weren't bunching up on themselves anymore. Anyone else have a moment where a random bystander just casually fixed your whole technique?

2

milam48•24d ago

Took a fall off a slate roof in Albany last March and it rewired my whole setup

I was working alone on a steep Victorian near Washington Park when my ladder boot slipped on some wet moss. Landed hard on the gutter but luckily only bruised my ribs and broke my phone. Anyone here switched to using a roof anchor and harness even on what they think is a simple one-story job?

17

rowan969•24d ago

The way people rush through the final brush pass bugs me more every year

I've been sweeping chimneys for about 15 years now and I swear the younger guys just want to get in and out as fast as possible. Last month I followed behind a crew that did a job up the street from me, and they left so much soot dust on the smoke shelf it was embarrassing. They used that new style rotary brush and just zipped through without even checking the flue tiles for cracks. I remember my old mentor making me do the final pass slow and steady, then running a rag over the damper edge to catch the last bits. He'd say 'the customer is paying for a clean chimney, not a quick sweep.' These days people act like vacuuming up the big piles is good enough, but that fine powder settles right back down after a few fires. Has anyone else noticed this get worse over the last couple years?

1

anderson.piper•25d ago

Went to a chimney cleaning trade show in Omaha and everyone was wrong about something

I drove 4 hours to that Midwest Chimney Sweep Expo last weekend in Omaha. All the big names in the industry were there pushing their fancy rotary cleaning systems with the vacuum attachments. I sat through three different demos and watched them try to clean a mock chimney setup. Not one of them could get the rotary head to handle a heavy creosote buildup without bogging down or flinging junk everywhere. I stood up during the Q&A and asked if anyone had actually tested these on a real masonry chimney that hasn't been touched in 5 years. Got a lot of dirty looks but no real answer. I've been using a simple wire brush and drop cloth method for 12 years at my own shop and I've never had a call back for a dirty flue. Why are we overcomplicating something that works just fine when we can spend that money on better safety gear instead?

20

the_wesley•27d ago

Used to fight a top hat for 20 minutes, now I just pop it off in 2

Back in 2019 I was working a job in Cleveland and spent almost half an hour prying off a rusted cast iron top hat with a crowbar and hammer, busting my knuckles twice in the process. Last week I bought a $15 ratchet strap from Harbor Freight, wrapped it around the base, and turned it a few clicks - the thing popped loose in under two minutes without a scratch. Has anyone else found a tool that completely killed an old headache job?

8

laura_schmidt82•27d ago

Found a trick for cleaning out really wet creosote without the mess

I had a job last week in Portland where the homeowner had been burning unseasoned wood all winter. The creosote was this thick, tar-like mess that usually takes forever to scrape and leaves black sludge everywhere. I tried using a shop vac with a drywall bag first, but it just clogged up after five minutes. Then an old timer I know told me to hit it with a heat gun on low for a few seconds before scraping. It softened that gunk just enough that it peeled off in strips instead of smearing around. Cut my cleaning time on that job from two hours down to about 45 minutes. Anyone else got a weird trick for dealing with wet creosote that actually works?

19

lindag33•28d ago

Tried a new brush head last Tuesday and got double the soot I expected

Honestly, I've been using the same poly brush for like 3 years now, figured it was fine. Last Tuesday I swapped to a different brand my buddy in Portland recommended, one with those twisted wire bristles instead of the flat ones. First job I used it on was a regular residential flue, nothing crazy, but the amount of creosote that came down was insane. I'm talking nearly double what I normally pull out of a chimney that size. Made me realize my old brush was probably just sliding over a lot of the buildup instead of actually scraping it off. Learned that a worn out brush can waste your time and leave a mess for the homeowner later. Has anyone else had a similar experience switching brush types and seeing that big a difference?

20

victor_robinson•28d ago

That time a customer asked if I sweep chimneys with a magic wand

I was up on a roof in Cleveland last spring, just doing my thing with the rods, when the homeowner yells up "Hey, you use any special potions up there?" I laughed it off, but then she comes out with a little crystal on a string and says she wants me to "bless the flue" while I'm at it. She was dead serious. I just nodded, finished the job, and told her the soot was my potion. Anyone else get weird requests from customers that stick with you?

7

knight.dylan•29d ago

Rant: Spent $80 on a knockoff soot vacuum and it failed on the third job

Tbh I figured a cheaper version would do the same thing as the good ones. Now I'm cleaning soot off a customer's driveway because it blew a seal mid-sweep. Anyone else have a tool that ended up costing more in cleanup than the savings?

3

reed.skyler•1mo ago

Caught myself using the wrong rod angle for like 2 years...

I was up on a roof in Cleveland last Tuesday, doing a routine clean on a 1950s house, and this old timer neighbor walks over. He watches me for a minute and then just goes "you know you're gonna snap your fiberglass rod cranking it like that, right?" I thought I had it all figured out... been doing it bent at a sharp 45 degree angle near the top. Turns out I was putting way too much stress on the connections. He showed me his method - keeping it straighter and using a slight curve down low. I felt like an idiot, but I adjusted and finished the job in 20 minutes less than usual. Has anyone else had a random stranger on a job site totally flip your technique?

20

piper779•1mo ago

Noticed a huge difference in draft after switching to 6-inch pipe

Swapped out my old 8-inch flue liner for a 6-inch one last spring on a job in rural Ohio. Before that, customers were always complaining about smoke spilling back into the room, no matter how clean the chimney was. After the switch, the draft improved noticeably within the first week, and I haven't had a single call back since. It really makes me question why so many folks still stick with oversized setups. Has anyone else seen this kind of change after downsizing their liner size?

14

murray.jana•1mo ago

TIL the difference between a fall clean and a spring clean is wild

I did a spring clean for a house last April and the chimney looked pretty good, just some light soot. Went back this October for their fall clean and I swear the flue was caked with a solid 1/4 inch of creosote. Turns out they switched to burning green pine all summer in their fire pit insert without telling me. That stuff just builds up way faster than seasoned hardwood. Has anyone else seen that big of a jump between seasons?

3

gracec16•1mo ago

Spent 4 hours fighting a soot dam in a Victorian flue last Wednesday

I had a call in an old house near downtown Portland, built in 1890s. The homeowner said the insert was smoking back into the room. I figured a standard brush job would fix it. But after 45 minutes of scraping, I hit a hard soot dam about 8 feet up that was baked solid from years of wood burning. It took me three different rods, a rotary tool attachment, and a shop vac to finally break through. That one stubborn spot ate up my whole afternoon and made me late for my next job. Has anyone else dealt with concrete hard soot in old chimneys like that? What tool actually works for that mess without damaging the clay liner?

24

gracec16•1mo ago

I finally changed my mind about using wire brushes on stainless liners after a job in Savannah

Was at a job last month near the river in Savannah. Old foreman told me to never use a wire brush on stainless, swore it would ruin the surface. Always figured he was just being picky. But I saw a liner he did 8 years ago and it still looked new. Mine had these tiny rust spots creeping in after 2 years. Guess he was right. Has anyone else seen this difference?

33

stone.lisa•1mo ago

Found out creosote buildup is actually flammable at way lower temps than I thought

Was reading through some old NFPA reports last night and saw a stat that really caught me off guard. Turns out third stage creosote can ignite at just 200 degrees Fahrenheit. I always figured it needed a hot chimney fire to go up. Found that detail in the 2023 NFPA 211 handbook. Makes me wonder how many of us are checking for that thick glaze stuff during routine sweeps. Have any of you seen it catch at lower temps than expected?

16

jade_jenkins•1mo ago

Warning: that old soot buildup you ignore can start a fire in your masonry stack.

I had a call last week from a lady in the old part of town, her chimney hadn't been cleaned in maybe 8 years. She said she just used Duraflame logs and figured it was fine. When I got up on the roof and dropped my brush down, I pulled back chunks of baked-on creosote that were nearly an inch thick. The worst part was the tile liner had hairline cracks from all the heat trapped behind the buildup. I showed her the pile of crusty stuff on her driveway and she went pale. It's not just about smoke smell or draft issues, that glazed creosote burns way hotter than regular wood. Has anyone else seen homeowners say they only use presto logs and then find this kind of mess inside?

4

lindag33•1mo ago

Found out 90% of chimney fires start in the smoke chamber, not the flue

I was reading a report from the Chimney Safety Institute of America last night and that stat really caught me off guard. Has anyone else been focusing too much on just the flue and not checking that area close enough?

12

evan_green52•1mo ago

Can we talk about how much faster creosote builds up in oil burners versus wood?

I been sweeping for about 8 years now, mostly wood stoves, but took on a oil furnace job last month. The difference in the amount of soot and glazed creosote was night and day. The oil unit had maybe 6 months of use and the flue was packed with a hard, shiny layer almost a quarter inch thick. A wood stove with that same timeframe usually gives me a lot less buildup, mostly fluffy stuff. Is this just a normal thing with oil, or did this homeowner have a bad tune on their burner? I'm wondering if I need to charge more for oil jobs going forward.