Got a call from a house in Brighton with a chimney that hadn't been swept in like 6 years. I always used wire brushes before but heard poly rope was better for hard glaze. Tried the poly rope on the first pass and it actually chewed through the crust way faster than I expected. Did the whole job in like 45 minutes vs the usual hour and a half. Anyone else switched over and noticed a big difference?
I was cleaning a 150-year-old chimney near the altar and realized the last sweep had just scraped the top inch while leaving a solid 3/4-inch crust underneath. Has anyone else found old work like that hidden behind decorative grates?
I had this guy named Jerry come by my job last Thursday in Portland. He watched me get my gear ready and said I was soaking my brush too much. He told me you want the bristles damp not dripping wet or you just push soot deeper into the masonry. I thought he was being picky but after I tried his way on the next stack the whole clean went way faster. Has anyone else cut back on water and seen better results?
For years I pulled out the shop vac on every single chimney job, even light creosote builds. Thought I was being thorough. Then I did a job for a older sweep in Portland last summer who told me I was wasting time and stirring up more dust than necessary. He showed me how he just uses a quick hand brush and a drop cloth, then seals off the fireplace with tape and plastic. Tried it on a few smaller jobs after that and realized I cut my time by about 20 minutes per house. Now I only break out the vac for heavy glaze or debris piles. Still feels wrong sometimes, but the numbers don't lie. Anyone else drop the vac for most routine sweeps or am I being lazy?
I always thought hand rods gave me more control on tight flues, but a job in a 1920s house in Toledo kept jamming up so bad I almost lost a deposit. Tried a rotary kit from a buddy and it cleared a creosote plug in under 10 minutes that would've taken me an hour with the old setup. Has anyone else made the switch and found it worth the extra upfront cost?
Yep, I was using a 7-inch brush on standard 8x8 flues for years. Figured it out when a customer handed me their old brush from the 80s and it actually scraped better. The smaller brush was leaving a ring of soot on the corners that I never noticed. Any other sweeps find out they've been using the wrong gear this whole time?
I had a job in an old house in Portland where the clay flue tiles were shifting and cracked. Normally I just set a new one and move on, but this one took 4 hours because the mortar was some weird mix from the 1920s that just crumbled every time I tried to pack it in. Anyone else run into ancient mortar that makes you question your whole day?
I kept turning down jobs where I couldn't see the flue from the top or bottom. Bought the VE2 for around $600 and it's been a game changer for diagnosing blockages. First job with it I found a raccoon nest that was totally hidden from both ends. Has anyone else had good luck with a specific inspection camera or is there a cheaper option that works just as well?
I just read this old union manual from 1983 that says top down is the only safe method, but literally every guy I know at the shop sweeps bottom up. I found the manual at a garage sale last weekend and it got me wondering, which way do you guys actually do it and why?
An older sweep named Gary watched me work a job in Portland last spring and said, "You're stripping the seasoning out of that liner." He explained how aggressive rodding with metal brushes was wearing down the stainless steel on a pellet stove vent I was servicing. I switched to nylon brushes and softer poly rods for lighter creosote after that chat. The liner stays smoother now and I get done about 15 minutes faster on average. Anyone else had to unlearn old habits because some seasoned pro called them out?
I kept thinking I was done, but every time I ran the brush through, more soot and crust came tumbling down. Turned out the previous owner had used some kind of sticky liner that was peeling off in layers. Has anyone else dealt with a liner that just won't quit giving you debris?
The old lady was dead serious, handed me a smudged stick of sage, and said her chimney had been whistling at night since she moved in six months ago, and then she asked if I could also check if the soot patterns looked like a face.
Had a customer in Cleveland last winter with a chimney so caked in stage 3 creosote I couldn't get a brush through. I remembered an old guy telling me to shove a raw potato up there before the regular cleaning, something about the moisture and starch loosening it up. Gave it a try on a 10 foot section of terracotta flue tile and it actually worked better than any chemical treatment I've tried. Has anyone else used this trick or did I just get lucky?
Thought it would last forever and be way easier on my shoulders, but the bristles started shedding after two weeks on just three jobs. Has anyone else had luck with cheaper plastic brush sets or am I just unlucky?
Had to pick between putting in a flexible poly flue liner or going with a rigid stainless one for a customer's old masonry chimney near downtown. I went with the stainless because the chimney had a bad offset and I figured it'd hold up better over time. Took me an extra hour to wrestle it into place but the draft was perfect when I tested it. Anyone else run into a situation where the cheaper option just wasn't worth the headache?
Had a job last Tuesday in Portland where the homeowner's insert was packed solid with creosote chunks. Couldn't get a standard vac hose in without knocking crap down into the firebox. Tried a few things, then remembered some old timer on here said to duct tape a 2 inch PVC reducer onto my 2.5 inch shop vac hose. Worked perfect. Sucked all the loose stuff right out without making a mess. Anyone else got weird vacuum hacks for tight flues?
I was super skeptical. Spent like $80 on some no-name brand and figured I'd be replacing it in a month. But after cleaning 12 chimneys so far this season it's still going strong. Suction is decent and the filter bag hasn't torn yet. Anybody else take a gamble on a budget tool that surprised you?
I was replacing a stainless liner in a house over in Lancaster last month and dropped a chunk of mortar down the flue. It landed right on a bend and would have blocked the whole thing if I didn't have my cheap Rigid shop vac handy. I spent like 80 bucks on it at Home Depot a few years back, and it's paid for itself ten times over pulling debris from tight spots. Has anyone else found a random tool that bailed them out on a tricky job?
I was cleaning out a flue on a house built in the 50s and pulled out this rusted old Stillson pipe wrench wedged in the smoke chamber. Customer said her dad was a handyman and probably dropped it up there decades ago. Anyone else ever find weird stuff stuck in chimneys?
I showed up to this old house in Brookline and started setting up, only to realize the flue liner was cracked all to heck halfway up. The homeowner said they just had the chimney cleaned but I guess they missed it. Had to scrap the whole sweep and come back with a relining kit, cost me a whole extra day and $350 in materials. Anyone else ever get burned by a bad inspection report from the previous guy?
So this guy George who's been sweeping since the 70s told me last month to stay away from those magnetic chimney sweeps everyone is raving about. He said they miss the fine soot and creosote that sticks to the sides. I figured he was just old school and didn't want to try new things, so I used one on a job over on Elm Street last Wednesday. The homeowner called me two days later saying their fireplace was smoking worse than before. I went back and ran a traditional brush through it, and the amount of black dust that came out was ridiculous. Now I'm worried about liability if that missed buildup causes a fire down the line. Anyone else had a bad experience with magnetic sweeps or am I the only one?
I been using the same solid brush setup for years, the one my dad handed down. Last week I got a call about a flue in a 1920s house near downtown, it was caked with about a quarter inch of glaze. I tried the old brush for 20 minutes and barely made a dent, just pushing soot around. Then I borrowed my buddy's rotary attachment with a small drill, the difference was wild. It chewed through that glaze in maybe 10 minutes flat and left the walls almost clean. Has anyone else switched from manual to powered tools and seen that big of a jump?
Two years ago I dropped $600 on a high-end HEPA vacuum from a well-known brand thinking it would handle all the fine ash and dust from my sweeps. After about 8 months the motor started making a grinding noise, and now it barely pulls any air. I sent it back to the manufacturer for a quote, and they wanted $300 just for the motor replacement. Has anyone found a shop vac that can really take the daily abuse of chimney work?