c/chimney-sweeps

That magnetic sweep brush scratched a flue liner in Dayton

Customer called me out last month for a second opinion after another sweep used a magnetic sweep brush on a clay flue liner. That brush picked up a roofing nail and dragged it the whole way down, left deep gouges all over the liner. I pulled the camera in and showed the homeowner, who just stared at the footage. I get that magnetic brushes are faster for steel liners, but on clay, they turn into a nail scraper. Has anyone else seen damage from those or am I the only one who's had to explain that repair quote?

That $140 rotary brush attachment finally paid for itself on a 3 story rental

I mean, I was skeptical since my old rods and manual scraping took forever, but this thing chewed through a season's worth of creosote in an afternoon, and honestly it beat my back up so bad I'm wondering if anyone else has made the switch or if I just got lucky with my flue setup.

Talked to a boiler tech in Pittsburgh, now I look at soot differently

I was swapping a liner for a guy who does commercial boilers on the side, and he said the color of the soot tells you more about the draft than any gauge you'll carry... he pointed at the crusty flakes in the firebox and said that gray stuff means your draw is lazy. I've been checking flue deposits before I even light a test fire now, it's wild how much it changes my prep routine. Anyone else get thrown off by a simple visual check beating their fancy tools?

Can we talk about hand tools versus power tools for cleaning?

I've been sweeping chimneys for about 8 years now and I keep going back and forth between using my hand brushes versus my power cleaning kit. Hand brushes give me way more control on tight bends and I can feel exactly what's happening in the flue. But last month I had a job in an old house where the buildup was really thick, like almost 2 inches of creosote in spots. My power kit with the rotary attachment cut through that in about 20 minutes less than hand work would have taken. The downside is the power kit left more dust floating around even with my vac hooked up, and I had to spend extra time at the end cleaning up. What do you guys reach for first when you walk onto a job?

An old timer at the supply house told me I wasn't pulling enough brush on the downstroke and now I get half the dust I used to

He watched me three times on a job over on Maple Street last Tuesday and said I was rushing the return, so I slowed down and started overlapping my passes by about 6 inches each time, and the difference in how clean the flue is now just from that one change has been night and day, has anyone else had a simple tweak like that totally change their results?

PSA: A homeowner told me my sweep marks were too faint and I was doing it wrong

Ngl, I got chewed out last week by a guy who'd been using my service for years. He pulled up a photo from 2021 showing thick black stripes on his flue tile, then pointed to my recent work where the marks were barely there. Said it looked like I was just brushing the surface. Turns out I'd been rushing my final passes with a poly brush, not letting the bristles dig in. Now I do three slow, hard passes on each section and I can actually feel the difference. Has anyone else gotten called out like this from a customer who knew their stuff?

Found a trick for creosote logs that actually works

Used one of those anti-creosote logs on a heavy buildup last Tuesday and it flaked off way easier than scrubbing. Has anyone else had luck with those or am I just getting lucky?

Saw a guy at a job site in Denver use a shop vac backwards on a stubborn flue

He taped the hose to the exhaust port and blew air up into the chimney. Cleared out a pile of creosote chunks in about 10 minutes that I'd been scraping at for an hour. Anyone else try this trick on a really clogged liner?

I used to think the old wire brush was the only way to clean a flue

I fought with soot and scratches for years on my usual routes around Portland. Watched a video from a guy in Seattle showing a nylon rotary brush on a drill and tried it last Tuesday on a really caked up job. Took me half the time and the mess was way less. Has anyone else tried those poly brushes for tight bends?

Spent $50 on a soot vacuum adapter and it was a total waste

I bought this universal soot vacuum adapter off Amazon for about 50 bucks. It didn't fit any of my standard hoses right and just leaked dust everywhere. Has anyone found a solid adapter that actually works with a standard shop vac without modifying it yourself?

Turned down using a shop vac for years, finally gave it a shot last week

I always figured a shop vac was overkill for chimney cleaning since I'd gotten by with just a drop cloth and a stiff brush for 15 years. But after a job in Portland left soot all over a customer's white carpet, I borrowed a buddy's vac and it cut my cleanup time in half. Has anyone else switched from the old way and never looked back?

Almost lost a job last month over a hidden bird nest

I was sweeping a flue in an old house outside Austin last month, the kind with a massive stone fireplace. Got to the second section and my rods just stopped dead, wouldn't budge an inch. Tried to push through with a little force like I sometimes do, but something told me to check first with my camera. Good thing I did, because there was a whole dried-up bird nest wedged in a crack, plus about six inches of debris behind it. Customer said they hadn't used the fireplace in 3 years, so that nest was probably sitting there rotting the whole time. If I'd shoved harder I could have cracked the flue liner or sent debris falling into their living room. Has anyone else run into surprise blockages that look solid but are actually just old nests or crud?

Used to think a soot vacuum was a waste of money, now I won't sweep a single flue without mine

Old school brush vs modern rotary system a tough lesson

I finally swapped out my old hand brush setup for a rotary cleaning system last month after 12 years. The rotary got through a heavy creosote job at a house in Columbus in about 20 minutes that would've taken me an hour before. But I had to redo the first chimney because I overspun it and the soot went everywhere. The old way was slower but I never made a mess like that. Anyone else try the rotary and have to go back to basics for certain jobs?

Blew a $300 motor on my drill this morning because I forgot to clean the ash out of the vents

I was running a brush through a tight flue on a job near Oak Street and the drill just seized up on me, now I gotta decide if I buy a replacement or try to strip it down and fix the windings myself.

My 3-year-old rotary brush failed on a job in Kansas City last week

I saw everyone on here raving about the SpinSweep 2000 so I picked one up back in 2021. Last Tuesday I was cleaning a flue for a customer near downtown and the motor just died halfway through, left me with a half-done job and a mess. I had to finish with my old hand rods and it took twice as long, but honestly that brush never cleaned as well as people claimed anyway. Has anyone else had their SpinSweep 2000 give out way earlier than expected?

Had my best Tuesday ever last month - cleared 8 chimneys in one shift

I usually max out at 5 or 6 on a good day, but everything just lined up. Each job was a straight shot with clean flues and homeowners who had the area prepped. Has anyone else had a day where the universe just cooperated like that?

Went to a client's house in Portland and found 3 inches of creosote buildup

Shelley said she had her chimney cleaned last year, but when I pulled the damper I saw a solid layer of crusty black glaze. I had to run the rotary kit with the chain knocker for 45 minutes just to break through. Has anyone else dealt with homeowners who swear their last sweep did a full job but clearly didn't?

Pro tip: Stop using those cheap fiberglass rods for long flues

I keep seeing guys on here using those $30 fiberglass rods on flues over 30 feet. Had a job in Denver last month where a guy's rod snapped halfway through a 40 foot flue and we had to fish it out. Those rods flex too much and they wear out fast on heavy creosote builds. Spend the $80 on polypropylene rods they last way longer and won't snap on you mid sweep. How many of you have had a rod break on a tall job?

Showerthought: The difference between a well-seasoned flue and a neglected one is actually crazy

I've been sweeping in Denver for about 5 years now. The other day I did a house where the owner had been burning exclusively seasoned oak for 2 years straight. The before and after on his flue was night and day - barely any creosote, just some loose soot. Then later that same week I hit a house where they burned whatever cheap pine they could find from the hardware store. That flue had a solid 1/4 inch of glaze buildup after just one winter. Same timeframe, same city, totally different results. Has anyone else noticed how much the wood quality changes how often you gotta sweep?

Finally stopped using a shop vac for ash cleanup after 8 years

I used to just suck ash out with my shop vac like everyone else, then last winter I had a fire start in the bag because I missed a hot ember. Switched to a proper ash vacuum from Home Depot, the 6 gallon one, and it's way safer and honestly faster. Anyone else make the switch after a close call?

Stumbled on a stat about creosote buildup rates that blew my mind

I was reading some old trade magazine my uncle left in the van, and it said a 1/8 inch layer of creosote can cut your flue draft by like 40 percent. That just seems wild to me, especially when you think about how fast that stuff builds up in a busy season. We had a job last winter where the homeowner said they cleaned it themselves six months ago, but we pulled out a solid half inch of fluffy stuff. Has anyone else ever run into numbers like that or is that magazine just trying to scare us?

Had a customer chew me out about my brush technique...

Last Tuesday an old-timer in Green Bay watched me clean his chimney and told me I was just pushing soot around instead of actually scrubbing the flue walls. He showed me how to work my brushes in a tight spiral motion instead of just jabbing up and down. Anyone else had someone on-site completely change how you approach a basic job?

Creosote fact that made me change my whole approach

I was reading through the NFPA 211 guide last month and found out creosote can ignite at only 451 degrees Fahrenheit. That's way lower than I thought. I always figured it needed a roaring chimney fire temp to catch. Turns out the stuff is basically a fire waiting to happen if you let it build up even half an inch. Now I do a flashlight check after every second cleaning job. Has anyone else had a close call because they underestimated how hot creosote burns?

Trying to clean a 90 degree bend that took me 3 hours

I had this one chimney over in Oakwood with a real sharp 90 degree turn near the bottom. Figured I'd just zip through it with my standard brush and rods, but the brush kept getting stuck halfway. Tried pulling it back and forth, some yanking, even tried a smaller brush and that just got jammed too. Took me three whole hours of wrestling and a ton of cussing to realize I needed to use a flexible chain whip attachment instead of the solid rod setup straight. Any of you guys run into a stupid tight bend that made you feel like you were fighting your own gear?