I've been in the chimney business for over 20 years now, and I always figured carbon fiber rods were just a gimmick for the guys who want to look fancy. Why spend $300 on a rod when my old fiberglass one has gotten the job done since 2005? Well, last December I had a job up in Portland where the flue had this crazy 45 degree bend halfway down. My fiberglass rod just kept binding up and I couldn't get my brush through no matter how I twisted it. The homeowner was watching me struggle and asked if I had a more flexible option. I ended up borrowing his buddy's carbon fiber rod that they use for a local sweep company. First pass through that bend was night and day, the rod just followed the curve without fighting me. Finished the whole job in half the time it would have taken with my old setup. Has anyone else had a moment where they had to eat crow on some gear they swore was overpriced?
My first year sweeping I always went from the bottom up because it felt more natural to push soot ahead of me. He said I was just packing debris into the smoke shelf and making a mess for later. Anyone else get told the same thing early on and have to unlearn their approach?
I was up on a two-story in Portland last month and used a drill brush to save time on a heavy creosote buildup, but it gouged the tiles so bad the homeowner ended up needing a reline, has anyone else ruined a flue this way or did I just pick the wrong brush?
Last month I swept a chimney over in Eugene for a retired couple, and I pulled out almost a full 5-gallon bucket of flaky creosote. They said they only burned seasoned oak all winter, but we had that crazy rainy April. Got me wondering if anyone else sees a big jump in buildup after damp seasons like that.
Was reading through an NFPA 211 update and found out that burning unseasoned wood produces 2x more creosote than dry wood. Never realized how much moisture content mattered until I saw that stat. Anyone else switch to moisture meters after finding this out?
They used a flexible aluminum liner instead of stainless steel, and it was already sagging after just two fires. Do you guys ever let clients do half the work themselves, or do you draw a hard line like I do?
Pulled a job in Portland last Tuesday and there was this mummified squirrel jammed halfway down the clay liner. Has anyone else run into weird animal blockages that took forever to clear out?
I've been sweeping chimneys for about 8 years now, and last Tuesday I noticed a customer's liner was way more scratched up than it should be. Turns out I was pushing the brush against the grain of the clay flue tiles the whole time. An old guy named Hank who was watching me work just said 'you're fighting the brick, son' and showed me how the brush should follow the natural curve. I switched my technique on the spot and the soot came off twice as fast with half the effort. Has anyone else had a basic move they did wrong for years until someone called it out?
Was reading through NFPA 211 after a close call on a job in Columbus and found out that third-degree creosote actually vitrifies into a glassy glaze when it hits 2300 degrees. I always thought it just burned off. Has anyone else run into that stuff that's almost impossible to scrape?
I was working on a house in Akron last month and the homeowner said they had a small chimney fire the week before. When I got up on the roof I could see the liner was cracked in three places from the heat. Since then I always check the liner condition before I even start sweeping. Has anyone else run into damaged liners that looked fine from the bottom?
Took me about 14 years of doing this full time. I keep a little notebook in my truck where I jot down every job address and date. Started it back in 2010 after I had an old lady call me out for leaving ash on her hearth rug. That number 2,000 hit me last Thursday on a job over in Oakdale. How do you guys track your own numbers or keep yourself accountable?
I had this house up in Bellingham that hadnt been swept in like 6 years and the buildup was insane. Normally I just go in with my rotary tool and call it good but this stuff was so thick and sticky I figured Id try the soot sponge trick I saw on some forums. Basically you wet the sponge and rub it on the glaze to pull it off without scratching the liner. Worked way better than I thought for the first pass, got about 60 percent of the crap off in half the time. But then I hit a patch that was really hard and the sponge just disintegrated on me, left little foam bits everywhere in the flue. Had to vacuum those out for an extra 20 minutes. Anyone else have that happen or did I just get a bad batch of sponges?
During a job in Omaha a customer's dad watched me work. Said I was moving too quick and missing the fine creosote buildup near the throat. I slowed down, started using a smaller brush for the tight spots. 3 months later my callbacks dropped by almost half. He was right.
Old timer named Bill told me to just use a soot eater instead of a wire brush for heavy creosote buildup. Did that on a job last month and the customer called me back a week later with smoke backing up into their living room. Anyone else been burned by advice from the older guys in this trade?
I went with the steel brush on a big job last month because the creosote was thick and glazed, but it scratched up the tiles bad and now I'm wondering if I should've just taken more time with the poly brush - anyone else run into this call?
Been doing this 12 years and always vacuumed everything before brushing. Guy I apprenticed under back in 2005 said just brush it down hard and let the debris fall. Tried it on a big masonry flue last week and saved myself 45 minutes of hassle. Anyone else ditch the vac on routine sweeps?
Had a long talk with an old mason named Frank at the supply yard last week, he pointed out my brush was worn down to 7 inches instead of the full 9 and told me 'you can't clean what you can't reach.' Has anyone else ever chased a draft problem for hours only to find out it was something this simple?
Bought one of those super expensive creosote removal logs for a flue that was getting pretty gnarly. It barely knocked any of it loose, I still had to go up and scrape it all by hand the next day. Anyone else find those things are basically just a scented candle?
I was in Greenville on a routine sweep for old Mrs. Patterson when I opened the cleanout door and saw a solid inch of glazed creosote inside the smoke chamber. Ducked back out to grab my chain scrapers and spent an extra 45 minutes chipping it all away before I even touched the flue. Anyone else run into this much hidden buildup in houses built before 1980?
Had a stretch last month where every call was a nightmare. Creosote so thick I had to run the rotary tool on three separate jobs near Boulder. Meanwhile my friend Tom did two easy flue relines in one day and walked with $900. Am I doing something wrong or do some weeks just stack the deck against you with tough customers?
Hey crew. So I get a call last week about a chimney that's drafting bad. Old brick house in Portland, nothing crazy. I figure it's just a stuck damper or some creosote buildup. Get up there, find the flue liner has a crack running about 4 feet down from the top. Easy fix I thought - just patch it with some refractory cement. Well the mortar was crumbly as heck and kept breaking off as I tried to clean the area. Ended up having to cut out a section of tile liner and replace it with a stainless insert. Took me 7 hours from start to finish. My back is still sore. Has anyone else had a routine job turn into a nightmare like that? How long did you expect vs. actual time?
Was up on a roof last Tuesday near a big rainstorm. Customer's flue was soaked, masonry was slick. Used my usual natural bristle brush, took forever to dry. The old guy I was working with handed me his synthetic one. Finished the job in half the time. Anyone else switched over for wet conditions?
Had a customer complain about smoke smell after a clean, went back and found soot packed in a crease I always missed. Turns out I was going top-down instead of following the flue's natural curve, threw off my whole angle. Anyone else have a moment where a simple change in technique made that big a difference?