chimney cleaning question

[kobudo]

How frequently should I have my woodstove pipe cleaned? Also, is this something I should/can do myself or hire it out?

I have a new Jotul Castine woodstove in my cabin. It will be used approx. 7 days/nights per month from Oct - April.
We use well seasoned wood. About 90% birch and 10% pine.
It is a straight 6" pipe out of the stove. We have 15' ceilings so it is quite long then it exits through the roof another 3' or so.

Also, I have an old Kodiak wood stove (I believe it was originally an insert model) that I use in the garage with about the same frequency as the Jotul. I think it has a 8 or 10" pipe with a s curve angle before it goes through the ceiling of the garage then out the roof.

 

[woodconvert]

How frequently should I have my woodstove pipe cleaned? Also, is this something I should/can do myself or hire it out?

I have a new Jotul Castine woodstove in my cabin. It will be used approx. 7 days/nights per month from Oct - April.
We use well seasoned wood. About 90% birch and 10% pine.
It is a straight 6" pipe out of the stove. We have 15' ceilings so it is quite long then it exits through the roof another 3' or so.

Also, I have an old Kodiak wood stove (I believe it was originally an insert model) that I use in the garage with about the same frequency as the Jotul. I think it has a 8 or 10" pipe with a s curve angle before it goes through the ceiling of the garage then out the roof.

How frequently depends on your fuel...the less seasoned it is the more you need to clean it. I clean mine once in the fall, and once mid winter for peace of mind (having said that, I have an exterior masonry chimney which are somewhat creosote prone versus an insulated SS chimney). After a few years of a track record on what your creosote buildup looks like you can adjust your cleaning as necessary (I know fellas that go two years without even inspecting their chimney...which I don't recommend).

As for doing it yourself, it's easy to do depending on your setup but it's not rocket science. The stuff needed to clean isn't expensive (will pay for itself multiple times over with you doing it yourself) and it appears you have a straight shot so if you can comfortably get to the cap, go for it. If heights makes you dizzy or something...it's not worth saving a buck.

 

[Hogwildz]

How frequently should I have my wood stove pipe cleaned? Depends on how dry the wood you burn is, how clean you burn etc. Check up top and around the cap about once a month the first year. Then adjust you inspection & cleaning depending on what you find. If you burn hot & clean, and dry wood, you shou;ld be good at 1 to 2x per season. Also, is this something I should/can do myself or hire it out?

I have a new Jotul Castine woodstove in my cabin. It will be used approx. 7 days/nights per month from Oct - April.
We use well seasoned wood. About 90% birch and 10% pine.
It is a straight 6" pipe out of the stove. We have 15' ceilings so it is quite long then it exits through the roof another 3' or so.

Also, I have an old Kodiak wood stove (I believe it was originally an insert model) that I use in the garage with about the same frequency as the Jotul. I think it has a 8 or 10" pipe with a s curve angle before it goes through the ceiling of the garage then out the roof.

Just read the rest, if your burning like 7 x a month, and burning properly, you should be good 1x per year. But I would inspect every other month just to get an idea of what your burning habits are and how they affect the pipe.

 

[ashburner]

As for doing it yourself, it's easy to do depending on your setup but it's not rocket science. The stuff needed to clean isn't expensive (will pay for itself multiple times over with you doing it yourself) and it appears you have a straight shot so if you can comfortably get to the cap, go for it. If heights makes you dizzy or something...it's not worth saving a buck.

I got a question on your response...

does the chimney HAVE to be cleaned from the cap-side and working downwards? One of chimney systems I was quoted (dura tech maybe?) had a Tee and support WITH a cleanout at the elbow where it exits the house.

I had envisioned being able to clean that myself while standing on the ground, but wonder if there is any other reason it needs to be cleaned from the top?

Thanks

 

[woodconvert]

As for doing it yourself, it's easy to do depending on your setup but it's not rocket science. The stuff needed to clean isn't expensive (will pay for itself multiple times over with you doing it yourself) and it appears you have a straight shot so if you can comfortably get to the cap, go for it. If heights makes you dizzy or something...it's not worth saving a buck.

I got a question on your response...

does the chimney HAVE to be cleaned from the cap-side and working downwards? One of chimney systems I was quoted (dura tech maybe?) had a Tee and support WITH a cleanout at the elbow where it exits the house.

I had envisioned being able to clean that myself while standing on the ground, but wonder if there is any other reason it needs to be cleaned from the top?

Thanks

I pull my brush down from the top because I've got a tall chimney and the rods go all wobbly on my about half way down. You don't HAVE to clean it from the top...but I don't know how you'd to it from the ground up. All that stuff you knock loose has to come back down to your cleanout. It's wiser to do it from the top for that reason as well as you can inspect your cap as well as look down the chimney (from natural light or a lighted devise) for minimal flue inspection. SO, if you can clean it, remove the creosote and inspect it from the ground then that's the way to go (and you'd better give up your secrets! ;-P )...the chimney doesn't know or care which way it's being cleaned from.

 

[ashburner]

I pull my brush down from the top because I've got a tall chimney and the rods go all wobbly on my about half way down. You don't HAVE to clean it from the top...but I don't know how you'd to it from the ground up. All that stuff you knock loose has to come back down to your cleanout. It's wiser to do it from the top for that reason as well as you can inspect your cap as well as look down the chimney (from natural light or a lighted devise) for minimal flue inspection. SO, if you can clean it, remove the creosote and inspect it from the ground then that's the way to go (and you'd better give up your secrets! ;-P )...the chimney doesn't know or care which way it's being cleaned from.

Ignorance (mine in this case) is bliss! :lol:

Not having actually seen one of these Tee's with a cleanout, I immediately assume this means access is available from directly below, and would allow one to put the brush and rods in from below as well. I was quick to figure out that all the soot and creosote would be coming out there, right in my face, but was weighing that against how to get up high enough up on the roof to access the cap and clean from up there. The height doesn't bother me (jumping from perfectly good airplanes fixed that), but the logistics of getting up there may be a problem.

I also assume that the cleaning rod(s) are much like the rods in my gun cleaning kits... a number of lengths that screw together, and I would clean as I go, add a rod, clean some more and so on, until I reached the cap. My guns don't care which end I clean the barrels from and so I assumed that this was going to be the case with the chimney as well, but thanks for confirming.

No secrets to share yet, other than the fact that I'm stumbling around in the dark and trying to learn all this in as short a time as possible! That should be pretty obvious with all the questions I'm asking on this forum since I joined though.

 

[woodconvert]

I pull my brush down from the top because I've got a tall chimney and the rods go all wobbly on my about half way down. You don't HAVE to clean it from the top...but I don't know how you'd to it from the ground up. All that stuff you knock loose has to come back down to your cleanout. It's wiser to do it from the top for that reason as well as you can inspect your cap as well as look down the chimney (from natural light or a lighted devise) for minimal flue inspection. SO, if you can clean it, remove the creosote and inspect it from the ground then that's the way to go (and you'd better give up your secrets! ;-P )...the chimney doesn't know or care which way it's being cleaned from.

I also assume that the cleaning rod(s) are much like the rods in my gun cleaning kits

yep, sept instead of al-you-minium they are fiberglass and as you attach sections it ends up (in my case) like pushing on a rope.

My guns don't care which end I clean the barrels from and so I assumed that this was going to be the case with the chimney as well, but thanks for confirming.

No problem

No secrets to share yet, other than the fact that I'm stumbling around in the dark and trying to learn all this in as short a time as possible! That should be pretty obvious with all the questions I'm asking on this forum since I joined though.

Just like your gun, get the "stuff" out but then STOP...you don't need to oil down the chimney bore or inspect for lead fouling :lol:

It's easy stuff if you can get up there.

 

[woodconvert]

The height doesn't bother me (jumping from perfectly good airplanes fixed that), but the logistics of getting up there may be a problem.

Forgot to ask, did you jump because it's a hobby or did Uncle Sam encourage it?

 

[ncmallard78]

so do most people clean from the top? how do they get out the creoset when the cleaning is done? thanks!

 

[ashburner]

The height doesn't bother me (jumping from perfectly good airplanes fixed that), but the logistics of getting up there may be a problem.

Forgot to ask, did you jump because it's a hobby or did Uncle Sam encourage it?

Nothing as dramatic or romantic as Uncle Sam encouraging me out the door, though if I could reel back a few decades and make some different decisions I would go that route. Always sorry I didn't.

The simple truth is I had a fear of heights and wondered if jumping a few times would fix it.

Believe it or not, it worked! :bug:

 

[ashburner]

Just like your gun, get the "stuff" out but then STOP...you don't need to oil down the chimney bore or inspect for lead fouling :lol:

It's easy stuff if you can get up there.

And thanks for letting me know when to stop the cleaning process. My next question just might have been where to find chimney oil... ;-P

 

[woodconvert]

so do most people clean from the top? how do they get out the creoset when the cleaning is done? thanks!

Yes, from the top. You get it out by either an exterior clean-out door (like mine) or you sweep it into your stove, let the dust settle and clean it from there.

 

[woodconvert]

The simple truth is I had a fear of heights and wondered if jumping a few times would fix it.

Believe it or not, it worked! :bug:

WOW...not that's grabbin' the tiger by the tail. Sheesh.

 

[woodconvert]

Just like your gun, get the "stuff" out but then STOP...you don't need to oil down the chimney bore or inspect for lead fouling :lol:

It's easy stuff if you can get up there.

And thanks for letting me know when to stop the cleaning process. My next question just might have been where to find chimney oil... ;-P

So you gunna give it a go?

 

[ashburner]

Just like your gun, get the "stuff" out but then STOP...you don't need to oil down the chimney bore or inspect for lead fouling :lol:

It's easy stuff if you can get up there.

And thanks for letting me know when to stop the cleaning process. My next question just might have been where to find chimney oil... ;-P

So you gunna give it a go?

Yeah, I just might go ahead and do it. Gonna discuss it again with mama this weekend to make sure she's buyin' into the plan as well. I think I have pretty much all my questions answered, and now it just comes down to commitment (I have a large amount of wood to take down, plus the keeping it burning and other aspects) and money of course.

I still have lingering questions about whether the Equinox burning 100% ash will really put out enough heat so that I can use it as a primary heat source and keep the upstairs nice and toasty warm, but even if it doesn't, I figure it will be a big help, and, it's one of those things that I probably won't lose too much money on should we end up selling the place (i.e. I can recoup my investment).

Dang if the one quote I got yesterday (all inclusive, material, delivery, installation, with me only having to light the match) was $8,400 tho, and that didn't include a hearth pad yet. :ahhh:

I am looking into competitive quotes, and even of having my wife's family do the installation, seeing as how they've spent time in the building trades at various times in their lives. Gotta get them here tho, b/c they live out of state.