FPX 44 Chimney cleaning advice

[Got Wood]

Rookie here.... Its time to clean my SS chimney for the first time. I have the FPX 44 Elite, 8" SS chimney - 24' long/tall. right on top of the FP there is a connection bend of maybe 30 degrees, the rest is straight up the Chase.
I'm looking for suggestions/advice/experience with how to best go about this with this unit. My uncertainty is around the connection bend and the cat converter. Some questions I have:
How do I handle the bend? Are the rods flexable enough to handle the bend?
Will the flakes collect in the bend? If so, how do I get them out?
Is disengaging the Cat enough or do I need to remove it?

Any other advice?

 

[[email protected]]

I was going to make my own poles as they are the most expensive part

a few 10ft lenghts of 1/2 pvc pipe and some threaded male/Female ends then and end cap with a nut to secure the brush.

Complete set up about 15-18 bucks
I was also unsure about the pipe ID on the Fpx 44 I was thinking it was 6in.
You don't need to remove the cat just remove the upper plate and you can see the flue.
I need to do this and give her a end of the season cleaning

 

[Got Wood]

The 44's uses an 8" SS chimney. Now, I'm not sure when getting a brush if you measure the outside diameter or the inside opening diameter?

Searching the web, the best result I found thus far using a kit is $63 for 24' of poles and 8" poly brush. Your PVC plan sounds reasonable... I worry about not doing it right and having the poles disconnect inside the chimney - then what? Shouldnt happen but I just know I would get into some mess...

http://www.fireplaceessentials.com/c7/Metal-Chimney-Cleaning-Homeowner-Professional-c93.html

 

[[email protected]]

I use a rope and tir it to the brush incase it comes loose.
Give it a shot well worth the 8 bucks in pvc and the brush you can re use if you have to buy fiberglass rods.
I was going to clean my stove this weekend and I noticed abit of surface rust inside the stove do you have any of this ?

 

[Got Wood]

I just spoke with the salesman who did my install. He is a real nice guy and his service/responsiness throughout was outstanding. A couple questions he answered for me:
* use an 8" poly brush. don't use a metal brush
* don't be concerned with the 15 degree bend at the top of the unit - the brush will get all the way to the top of the converter and push the crap into the firebox
* take out the Cat before cleaning
* to clean the Cat blow air through it, vacuum or pipe cleaners
* when putting back the Cat put back in place the 2 side pieces of insulation type material. He said dont worry about the top or bottom gasket type material. his take was its benefit is very minimal and its such a tight fit that I would probably rip/tear multple times putting the Cat back in.

I also have what looks like surface rust on inside of the stove. I forgot to ask him about that.

One other "problem" I had was with the gasket material on the right side door around the latching mechanism. It wore down and ripped. My sales guy said it was a common problem. He is giving me some cement type material to reapply.

 

[[email protected]]

All good info
Be careful with blowing out the cat use 30-40 psi. i was told to much could hurt the ceramic coating of the cat.
I also read some where on a bath cleaning but air/vacuum has worked well for me.

When I last had the stove swept by a pro he was very big fan of the 44 Elite and i wanted to watch him clean the stove so I could now do it myself. He told me the draw back to the posi pressure system is it's exposure to outside moist air.
He said to spray it all down with wd-40 and pour some kat litter in there for the summer. So I was thinking I would open the doors and let my wifes cat try to get up in there in hopes she will try it again when the fire is a blazing

 

[Got Wood]

So I understand.... where did he recommend spraying the WD 40? On the inside of the firebox?

Great idea on the cats - I have 4 running around here and could use to cook a few....

 

[[email protected]]

all over the inside