I keep seeing everyone recommend the whip method for creosote but a simple hand brush worked better for me

I was cleaning a 30-foot chimney last Tuesday outside of Portland that had a heavy layer of glaze creosote. Everyone online says to use a poly whip or chainsaw chain to break it up, but I tried a stiff wire hand brush with a long extension rod instead. The whip just bounced off the glaze but the hand brush actually scraped it down to the brick in three passes. Has anyone else found the whip less useful for really stuck-on creosote?

3 comments

3 Comments

piper_kim1mo ago

Honestly, I had the exact same problem last fall. I was fighting a thick layer of glazed creosote on a rental property's flue and the poly whip just slid right over it like it was nothing. Switched to a heavy duty wire brush with a stiff handle and it chewed through that stuff in a fraction of the time. Hand tools definitely win for the serious buildup, at least in my book.

avery_jackson1mo agoMost Upvoted

Hey @piper_kim, did that wire brush scratch up the inside of the flue at all with the heavy scrubbing?

ray3561mo ago

Doesn't that just make you wonder why anyone bothers with the poly whips at all, @piper_kim?