Gonna try sweeping....update....not happy

[Lumber-Jack]

Good you got it swept, even if you did it the hard way. If your wood is questionable the best plan you can have is to sweep your chimney regularly. Now that you got it done you bought yourself some more time to go find some rods at a reasonable price.
Usually the cost of a set of rods and a brush cost about the same as hireing someone to clean your chimney,,,,,,,,, ONCE!

 

[Beer Belly]

Good you got it swept, even if you did it the hard way. If your wood is questionable the best plan you can have is to sweep your chimney regularly. Now that you got it done you bought yourself some more time to go find some rods at a reasonable price.
Usually the cost of a set of rods and a brush cost about the same as hireing someone to clean your chimney,,,,,,,,, ONCE!

Thats exactly how I convinced the Wife....the initial cost is the biggie, after one sweep, it's paid for, from there on, every sweep is $$$ in my pocket....let's get real...her pocketbook

 

[Shari]

Got it done......Wife let me buy the brush....when I asked about Rods, the salesman said "you don't need those expensive Rods....use a rope"....I wanted to shoot him, he showed my Wife a cheaper, and less efficient way of cleaning (IMO), I'd rather have the rods so I can scrub the liner rather than just pass the brush thru, but 3 rods at $35 a piece was more than a 20 foot section of rope. We've been burning questionable wood (wet/somewhat green) for about 12 weeks, got 1/2 gallon of Black, fine soot....Wife sez it looks like dirt....no crystals or chunks.....what do ya think....not good, not bad ???....oh yeah....I passed the rope down, tied and pulled the brush up...2X

Sounds like you should be doing it a little sooner......

 

[pen]

Glad it worked out. Job well done. Now continue to do it every 12 weeks or sooner as Shari suggested, so that you can continue to judge how things are going.

pen

 

[Mrs. Krabappel]

I swept mine last weekend. I had the set-up almost all the way down when I remembered that the boy had put together the rods for me, and his quality control is suspect :gulp:

'twas fine though, and the process gets easier every time. My neighbor kindly lends me his brush set-up. I bought one rod because my chimney is a bit taller. I paid ten bucks at the most at Tractor Supply.

That's a lot of creo. I'd check it monthly.

 

[ispinwool]

may I ask if any of you folks have had any experience with "Creo Bags"
from Hearth Helpers?
Sweeping the chimney sounds like it wouldn't be extremely hard to do--but containing the
mess inside the house is a mystery to me...do you folks think the bags would work?

 

[bogydave]

Good it's done. 1/2 gallon not real bad for marginal wood.
Might try this for rods. (not etched in stone they have to be fiberglass threaded chimney rods)
Get 2, 10 foot pieces of the 1/2" or 3/4" gray electrical conduit. 20' cleaning rod (around $8 to $10 per stick)
Fit them together with a removable pin or small bolt. (may need to sand the female end some so they come apart easy after the pin is out)
May have to get creative to adapt the brush securely, but I bet you can figure something out.
could even make 5' sections with a dowel rod glued in one so the next 5' piece slid over the dowel & pin it.
My chimney, the top 5' & cap is where the creosote that needs a few brush strokes.
Like said, check & clean regularly
Good job

 

[Beer Belly]

I plan on doing it every other month as long as the roof is clear and safe for me to get onto (snow)....I am making a trip to Tractor Supply next weekend to buy a Splitter (so she sez)...I'll price the rods there. The fine Black soot...is that Creosote ???....I thought it would be crystals, or chunks ???...Thanks to you good folks (and 5 Coors Light) I got up the nerve to overcome my fear of heights and get-r-done

 

[Biff_CT2]

Got it done......Wife let me buy the brush....when I asked about Rods, the salesman said "you don't need those expensive Rods....use a rope"....I wanted to shoot him, he showed my Wife a cheaper, and less efficient way of cleaning (IMO), I'd rather have the rods so I can scrub the liner rather than just pass the brush thru, but 3 rods at $35 a piece was more than a 20 foot section of rope. We've been burning questionable wood (wet/somewhat green) for about 12 weeks, got 1/2 gallon of Black, fine soot....Wife sez it looks like dirt....no crystals or chunks.....what do ya think....not good, not bad ???....oh yeah....I passed the rope down, tied and pulled the brush up...2X

$35 for a single chimney brush extension? That's nonsense. You can get a set for something like $25 that more than meet the need.

I bought my brush and 24' of extension rods on amazon for something like $50. They work fine.
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_n...h-alias=aps&field-keywords=chimney+brush+rods

I also don't fool with ropes. Get the extension rods. The rods allow you to run the brush through the chimney multiple times without having to run up and down a ladder. It's safer, and you get more crap out of the chimney.

 

[lukem]

I think I paid $5 each for some 4' rods at Menard's. We used to clean my dad's chimney with a rope attached to the top and a weight on the bottom...rods are far and away easier. Just go buy them and tell her is about safety, because it is, if she doesn't like it.

 

[Beer Belly]

So, it's been 25 days since my last sweep.....I used a rope tied to the end of the brush and pulled it up thru the liner....2 passes. Since then, I got rods to attach to the brush, and this time gave it a good up and down scrubbing....3 passes....this is what I got....a lot more than I thought, but maybe the last sweeping didn't do all that well, but was shocked at what I saw.

 

[Beer Belly]

Finally found affordable rods at Tractor Supply....6 rods for a total of 18 feet for $37....the pile in the picture is all fine material....nothing chunky, just like a fine powder.....why Black, and not gray ???....my wood has some splits that are questionable. Moisture meter on the splits range from 14-22%....no hissing, but is slow burning and not a ton of flame....and no smoke out of the Chimney....still maintains 400* on the stovetop, just not the blazing fire I'm used to.

 

[ecocavalier02]

Finally found affordable rods at Tractor Supply....6 rods for a total of 18 feet for $37....the pile in the picture is all fine material....nothing chunky, just like a fine powder.....why Black, and not gray ???....my wood has some splits that are questionable. Moisture meter on the splits range from 14-22%....no hissing, but is slow burning and not a ton of flame....and no smoke out of the Chimney....still maintains 400* on the stovetop, just not the blazing fire I'm used to.

looks like brown coffee grounds to me. a lot for 25 days. but it least its not shiny black stuff.better wood next year will help for sure

 

[oldspark]

Somebody is ripping somebody else off, if those rods are 35 bucks a piece. I can find 'em around here for $5-7 all day.

Yes in deedy, you need to shop some where else.
My bad did not read all the way through the thread.

 

[Beer Belly]

Somebody is ripping somebody else off, if those rods are 35 bucks a piece. I can find 'em around here for $5-7 all day.

Yes in deedy, you need to shop some where else.
My bad did not read all the way through the thread.

The dealer said "These are professional grade Rods"....I will admit, they looked beefier than what I got from Tractor supply.....but I'm not (Wife won't let me) spending over $100 just on Rods....bad enough the brush was $28

 

[karl]

I don't use brush sections. I screw the brush into a PVC pipe. They screw tightly into them, but you have to buy a hot water pipe not a cold water one.