How often do you clean pipe?

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stmar

Burning Hunk
Sep 12, 2014
225
Wyo
We had quite a cold snap, actually several in a row, where the stove was running most of the time. We went above zero, actually hit 30, so I decided to give it a good cleaning and included the pipe. I had cleaned it at the beginning of the season and it was not too bad but there was some ash. I clean the stove about every week, sometimes twice if it is being used a lot, but I only clean the pipe 3 or 4 times a year. How often do you clean your pipe?
P.S. My pipe is a 4" that runs up through an existing 6" pipe and is about 12 - 15 feet so I have to get on the roof and run the brush through it.
 
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The pipe coming right out of the stove I stuff the shop vac up there every 2 weeks just for the hell of it, but I will give it a good cleaning at the end of the burning season... I only have about 4 ft of pipe then into the flu that I brush out every season
 
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We had quite a cold snap, actually several in a row, where the stove was running most of the time. We went above zero, actually hit 30, so I decided to give it a good cleaning and included the pipe. I had cleaned it at the beginning of the season and it was not too bad but there was some ash. I clean the stove about every week, sometimes twice if it is being used a lot, but I only clean the pipe 3 or 4 times a year. How often do you clean your pipe?
P.S. My pipe is a 4" that runs up through an existing 6" pipe and is about 12 - 15 feet so I have to get on the roof and run the brush through it.
At the start of each month, it's easier for me to remember than if I count bags. And like you, I looked at the weather to find a relatively nice day.

Given that yours is 4", you probably have more leeway in regards to when you want to clean.
 
I am in Wyoming not Colorado, lol.
I'll put it this way. My wife helps me. LOL! Yeah my head is rolling down the gutter but I couldn't resist.
 
The vent pipe gets cleaned every ton burned.
 
Like others, I take the Rutland vent brush to it after every ton burned.

But every other week or so this burn season I've started to also take a long handled broom stick and tap on my 5' section of exterior vertical venting and the hooded termination vent when the stove is running, until there's no more visible ash coming out.

I've been getting a good bit of loose fly ash that blows out, to the point where I have to be aware of the wind direction, so as to not come inside looking like Pig-pen of the Snoopy character fame ! :oops:

I just did the once-a-ton vent brushing before the holidays and there was very little ash in the vent, so this periodic 'purge cleaning' must help. Burning good quality 100% softie LaCrete pellets, that produce little ash, and what they do is very light and fluffy, no doubt helps as well.
 
What? Are you sure about that? Clean the what?

On a good day when close to a ton has been put through the beast, it gets a complete cleaning that ends with the use of a high air flow device.
 
before I start the stove for the year and again mid way through the season
 
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