Chimney cleaning results

[brakatak]

After 3 months and 1.5 cords. I got about a coffee cup full or more black flakes.

How does this look to you?

 

[pen]

In a perfect situation, it would be less black and more brown (but that's nit-picking). However, that is certainly not an excessive amount of accumulation at all. And I'd say you are doing just fine. Good on you for giving it a mid season cleaning.

Has the insert been operating well? You happy with how well the fuel is seasoned? Has the cap been staying clog-free?

pen

 

[Jdog]

I just got done doing my first sweep today and was going to ask the same thing but I got about 3 coffee cups full and mine was all brown no black.what does the brown mean pen and is 3 ok my total leanth I cleaned was 15ft 4in?

 

[PLAYS WITH FIRE]

I can be waaaay off but I think of it like a spark plug:

Black is rich and bad, carbon build up, cylinder scoring, valve deposits, chimney fire!

White is lean and real bad in an engine as you can have a melt down possibly melted chimney pipe?

Brown is perfect

But with ethanol they say you can't judge your plug anymore by this method and lamda probe/meter is best for tuning...

 

[Charles1981]

Do you have an empty aluminum coffee can 24-32 oz? That is how I and the chimney sweep have measured accumulation before...

I just swept after 3 months and got 20oz from the chimney, and .... uggg....10oz of nasty shiny crap from the chimney cap alone.

 

[pen]

I just got done doing my first sweep today and was going to ask the same thing but I got about 3 coffee cups full and mine was all brown no black.what does the brown mean pen and is 3 ok my total leanth I cleaned was 15ft 4in?

Brown has less energy in it than the black, or the black glazed stuff (looks like a black mirror inside the chimney). The difference in getting more brown can of course be the way the stove is operated, or if it is an uninsulated liner, versus insulated or Class-A, etc.

If someone gets a 1/2 gallon + , and it's a modern setup and a mid-season cleaning, then I'd be starting to wonder what the dysfunction is.

pen

 

[Charles1981]

Does chimney/liner length matter to the amount of accumulation? I have 28 feet of liner while it seems many others are in the 16-20ft range. Does this make a substantial difference in the possible accumulation?

 

[pen]

Does chimney/liner length matter to the amount of accumulation? I have 28 feet of liner while it seems many others are in the 16-20ft range. Does this make a substantial difference in the possible accumulation?

The extra length gives your exhaust gasses more of a chance to cool on it's way up and out giving you a better chance at finding a bit more accumulation. However, with a taller chimney you may get a better draft than the next guy and consequently have a higher quality burn.....

At the end of the day, there are lots of variables but the most important one is the operators willingness to inspect and regularly sweep, then create a schedule that is based upon what was found in previous cleanings. To me, a once a year sweep is mandatory. But I still do mine 3x a year no matter how little I get. It just doesn't hurt to do it, mine is easy to clean, so I go to town for peace of mind.

pen

 

[BrotherBart]

Does chimney/liner length matter to the amount of accumulation? I have 28 feet of liner while it seems many others are in the 16-20ft range. Does this make a substantial difference in the possible accumulation?

Yeah it does. I never have thickness on the liner walls worth worrying about and get a good bit more than the tea cup and thimble fulls I see people reporting here from my 21' chimney.

 

[BrotherBart]

If it didn't make any difference then soot would only be on the first sixteen or seventeen feet and the rest would be clean.

 

[shoot-straight]

Unbelievably I am (was) on a two year cleaning cycle..... never more than a cup or so of creo. All from the top. I have a 30' or so insulated lined chimney. But I run my stove pretty warm. Good thing too, my chimney is really hard to access. 10/12 roof and a stand off mansory chimney. My current guy leaps from my peak onto it. He's crazy, but more importantly, insured!

Now, I'm switching to an bk Ashford I fully expect to clean it more often. I think I need to find a way to access it myself.

 

[Jdog]

Thx pen. There was no shinny gooy stuff at all. My cap was really clean to. Iv had to burn some not so good wood so I fig if check today. So if burning stays the same will one more cleaning be ok u think?

Oh yea and it is a class a ss Selkirk 6 chimney 6ft exposed above roof

 

[jatoxico]

Got about the same today from my 30' uninsulated liner in exterior masonry. Not too bad but a lot of cold starts for me can't be helping.

 

[PLAYS WITH FIRE]

I used to cold start almost all my fires and had a bit more build up. But I noticed when I could run it for several days I would use a heck of lot less wood. So now I throw a couple splits in before we leave and come home to coals. I cleaned once already, with an icy roof, and got very little. I think maybe a half cup and that for sure was just from the top. 17' uninsulated, exterior

Got about the same today from my 30' uninsulated liner in exterior masonry. Not too bad but a lot of cold starts for me can't be helping.

 

[brakatak]

In a perfect situation, it would be less black and more brown (but that's nit-picking). However, that is certainly not an excessive amount of accumulation at all. And I'd say you are doing just fine. Good on you for giving it a mid season cleaning.

Has the insert been operating well? You happy with how well the fuel is seasoned? Has the cap been staying clog-free?

pen

Thanks Pen. Good to hear I'm burning properly. Nice having that peace of mind. This was my first DIY chimney cleaning. Big fan of the Sooteater.
Yes, insert operates great. Wood was decent in the 17-25% range. And cap has been staying very clean.
Very happy so far in my first year burning.

 

[PLAYS WITH FIRE]

I have pondered the idea of using an egt guage like the one showed below for my insert pipe. It requires 12-14vdc but this can be had my making it or buying it at Radio Shack . A bit pricy but cool!

gage
http://www.newsouthperformance.com/indigo.htm

12vdc supply
http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=21919056