Chimney swept today. How'd they do?

[Marconis]

Got my chimney swept today to be prepared for fall burning. Used a different company than last year; very reputable and most highly rated in the area...family owned, nice guys. One guy swept from the top, another from the bottom with the brush and a vac. I'm pretty pleased, there's about two clay tiles on a bend where there's still a streak of soot but no big deal I guess (visible in photo). They said the clay liner still looks great and smoke chamber is in good enough shape. Thoughts?

Best photos I can really get from up the flue. I tried to get on top to look down but my ass was burning and my roof is steep, so I gave up.

 

[Ctwoodtick]

Not a pro, but here are some thoughts.
Pictures don’t/can’t show every bit of chimney so issues could be there but not easily visible.
You’ve got some glaze creosote in the smoke shelf area. That may be an issue to address, others here can let you know, glad there’s not more of it in the picture.
At least to my eye, in the smoke chamber area, it can be difficult to tell what is globs of mortar and what might be wads of soot buildup, especially in the corners.
As you noted, there was some buildup that was left in the clay tiles. Not a lot but I might be a little annoyed that they missed that.
After you get some more feedback, you might choose to get a Sooteater do it yourself chimney sweeper tool that connects to a drill. It’s very easy to use and you’re obviously interested in making sure all is good with your chimney. The sooteater is good for the dry soot that you develop but won’t help with the glaze buildup you have.

 

[Marconis]

Not a pro, but here are some thoughts.
Pictures don’t/can’t show every bit of chimney so issues could be there but not easily visible.
You’ve got some glaze creosote in the smoke shelf area. That may be an issue to address, others here can let you know, glad there’s not more of it in the picture.
At least to my eye, in the smoke chamber area, it can be difficult to tell what is globs of mortar and what might be wads of soot buildup, especially in the corners.
As you noted, there was some buildup that was left in the clay tiles. Not a lot but I might be a little annoyed that they missed that.
After you get some more feedback, you might choose to get a Sooteater do it yourself chimney sweeper tool that connects to a drill. It’s very easy to use and you’re obviously interested in making sure all is good with your chimney. The sooteater is good for the dry soot that you develop but won’t help with the glaze buildup you have.

I appreciate your feedback! I was a little irritated with the soot they missed, but cutting them some slack because it was probably 120* on my roof today. As for the shelf, It’s mostly uneven mortar with a little residual soot that apparently fell down after the cleaning. Trust me when I saw that in my photo you better believe I swept my hand on it! As far as the glaze creosote, I agree; I actually posted about that last year because I had some concerns. It only appears to be developing on the bottom edges of the smoke chamber - I think someone on here said it was relatively normal but to keep an eye on it.

Is that something that those creosote sprays can handle? I’ve also been thinking about investing in my own tools, but my roof is quite steep and my wife would never forgive me if I well…died. I’d at least like to get the smoke chamber a little more. Considering getting it parged as well.

Again, thanks for your honest feedback. This is my first real sweep since owning the house so just wanted to see what y’all thought.

 

[Ctwoodtick]

I don’t know enough about how to address the glaze, or even if it may be ok to leave for now.
You can use the Sooteater from the bottom up. It’s one it’s good points for people who don’t want to be on the roof. You can use a plastic sheet to close off the fireplace opening so that only the rods go up the chimney and soot that falls doesn’t come into the room. Your chance of dying doing it this way is lower this way, lol. I’ve not perfected going from bottom up with a bit of a mess, but I’m sure I’m not doing it very well. My roof is very easy so I go top down to the wood insert.

 

[Marconis]

I don’t know enough about how to address the glaze, or even if it may be ok to leave for now.
You can use the Sooteater from the bottom up. It’s one it’s good points for people who don’t want to be on the roof. You can use a plastic sheet to close off the fireplace opening so that only the rods go up the chimney and soot that falls doesn’t come into the room. Your chance of dying doing it this way is lower this way, lol. I’ve not perfected going from bottom up with a bit of a mess, but I’m sure I’m not doing it very well. My roof is very easy so I go top down to the wood insert.

Good to know -- yeah I wondered if it'd be able to get all the way to top from bottom up, I'll do a little looking. Also rereading your glob of mortar comment, thought you said the smoke shelf. In the chamber, that is definitely mortar that is just soot stained. I've poked it with my fireplace brush all over and it's hard as a rock.

 

[Ctwoodtick]

Good to know -- yeah I wondered if it'd be able to get all the way to top from bottom up, I'll do a little looking. Also rereading your glob of mortar comment, thought you said the smoke shelf. In the chamber, that is definitely mortar that is just soot stained. I've poked it with my fireplace brush all over and it's hard as a rock.

Nice. I was thinking that was the case too.

 

[Marconis]

I will say, there's been a noticeable campfire smell coming from my fireplace this summer and this morning it didn't smell much at all. So, that's nice, I guess!

 

[bholler]

I would honestly say they didn't do a very good job. I see areas where there is still material left on the clay liners. On the plus side what I see there looks like light dry powder which isn't a safety risk. Your smoke chamber could also definitely benifit from parging

 

[Marconis]

I would honestly say they didn't do a very good job. I see areas where there is still material left on the clay liners. On the plus side what I see there looks like light dry powder which isn't a safety risk. Your smoke chamber could also definitely benifit from parging

Honest feedback always appreciated! 5 star rating, I guess it's impossible to know what you're going to get these days. A lot of folks probably don't stick their head up the flue after.

My whole flue looked like that dry powder soot prior, so I know they did something...the visible dry powder that was missed seems to only be left on one side of two-clay worth of liner, rest seems "smooth". Also have a tint of the red terra cotta shining through which I didn't have before.

All that being said, how would you rate the cleanliness of the flue/chamber?

 

[bholler]

Honest feedback always appreciated! 5 star rating, I guess it's impossible to know what you're going to get these days.

My whole flue looked like that dry powder soot prior, so I know they did something...the visible dry powder that was missed seems to only be left on one side of two-clay worth of liner, rest seems "smooth". Also have a tint of the red terra cotta shining through which I didn't have before.

All that being said, how would you rate the cleanliness of the flue/chamber?

I would say a 3 or 4 out of 5. Mainly because the accumulation in your flue was dry powder to start with.

 

[Marconis]

I would say a 3 or 4 out of 5

I'll take a bias-lean towards the 4 . What could they have done better, from what you can see (other than the obvious soot left behind)? I'm asking so that next year I can look before they leave. This is the second company I used; first one the vibes were meh. Maybe I should just do it myself next year.

Thanks, bholler.

 

[bholler]

I'll take a bias-lean towards the 4 . What could they have done better, from what you can see (other than the obvious soot left behind)? I'm asking so that next year I can look before they leave. This is the second company I used; first one the vibes were meh. Maybe I should just do it myself next year.

Thanks, bholler.

They could either use a brush that fit properly or run a rotary cleaner. The smoke chamber honestly looks pretty clean. The only thing I can see from the pics is the spot left in the flue. Which I don't really see any danger from it's just rediculous that they would leave it especially because it looks like it would be very easy to clean.

 

[Ctwoodtick]

They could either use a brush that fit properly or run a rotary cleaner. The smoke chamber honestly looks pretty clean. The only thing I can see from the pics is the spot left in the flue. Which I don't really see any danger from it's just rediculous that they would leave it especially because it looks like it would be very easy to clean.

Was curious to see what you thought about some of the shiny glaze in the smoke shelf area.

 

[bholler]

Was curious to see what you thought about some of the shiny glaze in the smoke shelf area.

It's very thin and minor. Not a big deal at all. It could probably be eliminated by smithing things off and rounding the corners with parging

 

[Marconis]

Thank you both for your input. Glad to hear you think the chamber is actually pretty clean. Have a wonderful Sunday night, fellas.

 

[bholler]

Thank you both for your input. Glad to hear you think the chamber is actually pretty clean. Have a wonderful Sunday night, fellas.

The open cracks concern me a bit though

 

[Marconis]

The open cracks concern me a bit though

The mortar missing between some of the bricks, you mean? Yeah. Same lol, that’s why parging is in my future.

 

[bholler]

The mortar missing between some of the bricks, you mean? Yeah. Same lol, that’s why parging is in my future.

Yes the missing mortar. If done properly and with the right materials it can really smooth out the flow in the smoke chamber reducing buildup. I usually eliminate the smoke shelf at that time as well for the same reasons

 

[Marconis]

Yes the missing mortar. If done properly and with the right materials it can really smooth out the flow in the smoke chamber reducing buildup. I usually eliminate the smoke shelf at that time as well for the same reasons

Gotcha. Thanks!

 

[Marconis]

Morning! So I’ve had three fires so far this season and decided to attach my phone to a broomstick and get some video of the inside of the flue tile. Could only reach the second tile. It’s apparent they just didn’t spend enough time sweeping; you can see brush marks along a lot of the soot/creosote that in my non-expert opinion probably could have come off with some elbow grease. What I did discover though is some light glazed creosote mostly in the corners of the tile.

Last year I did one of those CSL logs, and this year after my first fire I burnt one of those Pine Mountain creosote buster logs. I am fully aware these aren’t substitutes for sweeping but it gives me peace of mind knowing that something can potentially help. I know for certain I am burning borderline wood, but I am definitely burning hot. Does anyone have experience with ACS creosote spray? It appears you just spray it on the logs. Is it even worth it?

Again, fully aware this doesn’t replace sweeping or anything. Thanks for your input!

 

[Marconis]

Disclaimer: am I obsessive about this? Yes, yes I am.

Alright , so I bought a bottle of Rutland creosote remover spray and have had two fires since using it. Sprayed the chit out of the firebox and smoke chamber, also sprayed it on my wood. Curious if it’s doing anything, after two uses this is the result with a light brushing. Clearly turned some of the glaze, can see the substrate of the brick again. Gonna keep using it!

Before:


After