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c/chimney-sweeps•quinna89quinna89•26d ago

The week I stopped trusting the 'standard' creosote test strips

I had a job in a 1920s brick house in Tacoma last month where the strips showed minimal buildup, but my camera found a thick, glazed layer halfway up. I had to go back with the heavy rotary gear, adding 3 hours to a job I'd quoted for 2. The homeowner was understandably annoyed at the extra charge. Has anyone else had a strip fail them like that, and what's your backup check now?
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3 Comments
margareto26
margareto2626d agoMost Upvoted
Trust the camera, not the strips.
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matthewdixon
That test strip is reading 9.5.
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wesley_jones
Saw a video from a pool tech who explained this perfectly. He said test strips are super sensitive to light and moisture the second you open the bottle. The chemicals on them start to break down fast. So a fresh strip and a month old strip from the same bottle can give you totally different numbers. I always trust a liquid test kit or a good digital reader over a strip any day.
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