chimney cleaning advice

[RoosterBoy]

hay guys with my old Vermont casting wood stove i would just have my chimney brush tied to a rope with a lead weight at the bottom of the brush this would send the brush right down the chimney no problem.

but now that i will have a avalon i have to find a new way because the avalon now has bars and bricks that could brake and be hard to clean the soot out of. can someone tell me how to clean the chimney with the new stove my old single wall pipe did not come apart without taking the back of the stove off then sliding the pipe down then id have to replace the gasket this is why i just sent the brush down and vacuum it clean.

the new stove is not in yet as i just installed a new 6 inch chimney yesterday.

can someone give me some advice on what to do to make cleaning the new stove easy

thank you
Jason

 

[BrotherBart]

The Avalon manuals I looked at all showed a way to remove the baffle and airtubes for cleaning. Which model do you have?

 

[Shane]

Yep that's all you have to do is remove the baffle. Do people have something against rods? I've read a few posts now where people are using rope & a weight. Rods are nice.

 

[jabush]

Do people have something against rods? I've read a few posts now where people are using rope & a weight. Rods are nice.

I picked up a 6" poly brush at Ace yesterday and thought about buying the rods. They wanted $8.99 per rod. I figured I'd do the rope bit and if it's a PITA then I'll go back and spend the extra $47 on 5 rods.

In defense of the rods...I have very easy access to my roof and chimney. If my house was higher and my roof steeper I would've just bought the rods.

 

[wg_bent]

The place I got the brush wanted 25 dollars per 6' section of rod. They also tried to charge me 42 dollars for the poly brush till I protested. The price dropped to 17 after that.

 

[RoosterBoy]

i am buying the new avalon renier

thanks
Jason

 

[BrotherBart]

i am buying the new avalon renier

thanks
Jason

It will be on page 34 of your manual. Instructions on how to take the baffle and tubes out and put them back in the stove. All you really need to remove is the baffle for cleaning. Just lift the firebrick up, tilt it and let it down into the stove. Reverse to re-install.

 

[Roospike]

O' yeah , rods are the way to go . The brush is kinda tight in the pipe and the rods give you the extra force to run a smooth sweep . I have two neighbors that use a "LOG" with an eye bolt on both ends , rope on both side and run the log up and down the pipe . This idea must of come from way back because i have never heard of such an idea and these guys are in there late 60's and also its not like they cant afford the brush and rods .

 

[BrotherBart]

I dropped the dough for the rods last year and they are resting peacefully in the garage after using them once. I went back to the rope. Thirty feet of rod is a pain to put together and take apart up on the second story roof and with the rope I just pull the brush down, pull it back and then down and I am done. I use a rope on both ends of the brush.

 

[Shane]

I suppose without the quick disconnects it would be a pain to assemble and disassemble. With them though life is alot better. Plus your able to shut the stove completely off and don't have to worry about dust in the home. To each his own though.

 

[BrotherBart]

I suppose without the quick disconnects it would be a pain to assemble and disassemble. With them though life is alot better. Plus your able to shut the stove completely off and don't have to worry about dust in the home. To each his own though.

Yeah. If I was doing it for a living and risking paying to have that customer's million dollar white carpet cleaned I would have the disconnects and the rods for sure. And a vacuum that would suck the paint off of a Lexus.

I just have to make my own dinner if I screw up.

 

[michaelthomas]

I bought 8 45" rods and a brush yesterday from Ace and cleaned my chimney today. It wasn't too much of a hassle. I used my sons kids golf club bag to carry the rods up the 28' ladder so i could climb with both hands. I don't really care for heights and ladders. I pushed it up and down 2x and viola chimney cleaned. It took maybe 1/2 hour with ladder setup and tool round up. Beats the $115 for the sweep last year. I would still have a sweep clean the chimney every other year to inspect the liner and maybe see something that I am missing. Overall it was pretty easy and I will try to get up there every few months during the burning season.

 

[Roospike]

I bought 8 45" rods and a brush yesterday from Ace and cleaned my chimney today. It wasn't too much of a hassle. I used my sons kids golf club bag to carry the rods up the 28' ladder so i could climb with both hands. I don't really care for heights and ladders. I pushed it up and down 2x and viola chimney cleaned. It took maybe 1/2 hour with ladder setup and tool round up. Beats the $115 for the sweep last year. I would still have a sweep clean the chimney every other year to inspect the liner and maybe see something that I am missing. Overall it was pretty easy and I will try to get up there every few months during the burning season.

WOW ! Thats $230.00 an hour the pro sweep is charging ! HOLY CHIT ! I had no idea .......... I've always done my own chimney and had no clue to the pro sweep charge. Is that normal ?

 

[My_3_Girls]

I bought 8 45" rods and a brush yesterday from Ace and cleaned my chimney today. It wasn't too much of a hassle. I used my sons kids golf club bag to carry the rods up the 28' ladder so i could climb with both hands. I don't really care for heights and ladders. I pushed it up and down 2x and viola chimney cleaned. It took maybe 1/2 hour with ladder setup and tool round up. Beats the $115 for the sweep last year. I would still have a sweep clean the chimney every other year to inspect the liner and maybe see something that I am missing. Overall it was pretty easy and I will try to get up there every few months during the burning season.

Kid's golf bag for the rods? Great idea! I've been trying everything for the past few years including everything tied to my belt and putting the 30 feet of rods together and heaving it up on the roof. Watch out, yard sales, I'm looking for a junior golf bag!

 

[zzr7ky]

Hi -

I use inexpensive metal electrical conduit for rods. It is light and easy to work.

ATB,
Mike P

 

[Rhone]

I just plopped $105 for a chimney sweep. They ended up taking an hour (there were 2 of them), in part because my rain cap was pop rivited (wasn't me that did that), they had to drill it out. I was also all over them having them try to figure out my draft problem.

BECAREFUL removing the baffle, and make sure you remove it before you clean. If your unit has a bunch of tubes with holes at the top as its secondary burn, the piece above the tubes is most likely a thin piece of ceramic insulation. Your manual probably tells you that you are to lift or move the baffle either by the sides, or the tubes, and not the piece above the tubes else you'll break it.