Took the old steel brush off the truck for a 1930s stack in Salem

Last Thursday I had a job in Salem on a house with a clay liner that wasn't round, it was oval and knobby. Everyone in my shop swears by the newer poly whips, but that liner had so much crusted creosote the whip just bounced off. I grabbed my grandfather's steel brush from 3 years ago, the one with the worn bristles, and it shredded that buildup in about 20 minutes. The homeowner watched me the whole time and asked if I was sure it wasn't going to scratch the tile, but it left the liner smooth as glass. I know the poly guys say steel is outdated, but for old irregular flues, nothing else grabs like it. Has anyone else kept a beat-up brush around for these weird retrofit jobs, or am I the only one clinging to the past?

1 comments

Log in to join the discussion

Log In

1 Comment

phoenix_grant1mo ago

Did you see that old chimney sweep forum post about steel brushes lasting longer on oval liners?

1