Inovative way to clean one's Chimney. It has worked for 25+ years All cleanned and set for the seco

[elkimmeg]

So how do you clean your chimney? I have a very simple cost effective solution. I use a ball of chicken wire, same ball used for 25 years. Center fireplace, walkable roof I take a rope attach a 5 lb steel weight down my chimney to the cleanout door. Over the years I molded this ball of chicken wire to a round wedge shape pattern I pull the rope out threw the center of the chicken wire ( really defined center with 25 years use) and attach the same 5lb weight to act as a large washer I re stretch the chicken wire larger than flue and stuff in the opening rope facing up. A key to great operation is the mound or ball of wire is tapered around the weight. The harder I pull, the weight pulls up and expands the wire ball creating even more friction and cleaning better I repeat this operation about 3 times. Is it better than a chimney brush, I don’t know never bought one? 25+ years and still a perfect record 3 different stoves in the chimney and it does the job Works better than rattling a heavy chain in there.

Chimney cleaned less than 15 minutes half way threw the season. Bring on the cold weather. Used up two cords plus so far but there is 14 more here I can tap into
Actually 2+ more years supply. But I got my eyes on adding to this supply

Been working on something as soon as I know I will seek the forum audience advice on it

 

[wg_bent]

So how do you clean your chimney? I have a very simple cost effective solution. I use a ball of chicken wire, same ball used for 25 years. Center fireplace, walkable roof I take a rope attach a 5 lb steel weight down my chimney to the cleanout door. Over the years I molded this ball of chicken wire to a round wedge shape pattern I pull the rope out threw the center of the chicken wire ( really defined center with 25 years use) and attach the same 5lb weight to act as a large washer I re stretch the chicken wire larger than flue and stuff in the opening rope facing up. A key to great operation is the mound or ball of wire is tapered around the weight. The harder I pull, the weight pulls up and expands the wire ball creating even more friction and cleaning better I repeat this operation about 3 times. Is it better than a chimney brush, I don’t know never bought one? 25+ years and still a perfect record 3 different stoves in the chimney and it does the job Works better than rattling a heavy chain in there.

Chimney cleaned less than 15 minutes half way threw the season. Bring on the cold weather. Used up two cords plus so far but there is 14 more here I can tap into
Actually 2+ more years supply. But I got my eyes on adding to this supply

Been working on something as soon as I know I will seek the forum audience advice on it

A picture would be cool Elk!

Any suggestions on cleaning a liner where removing the insert would be a giant PITA?

 

[joshuaviktor]

Hear hear Getting an insert, and curious about the cleaning thing myself!

But congrats, elk Very ingenious!!

 

[wg_bent]

I've wondered if somethign like:
Remove all interior baffles at top of stove (not too bad actually in my stove) and pull something like Elk described DOWN the liner towards the stove. Then the junk could be removed from inside the stove with a shop vac. Obviously haven't dug on this task yet, but I should probably get thinking about it.

 

[JAred]

I cleaned my chimney liner for the first time today I had been getting nervous about creosote chimney fires ect.... I bought a poly brush and 25' of fiberglass poles. Went up there and discovered a frost like effect on the spark screen no biggie wiped it off peered down the hole and found maybe an 1/8th of an inch of creosote at the top three feet. It so happans the top three feet are above the roof. mmmm gets cold and codensates there. the rest of the liner looked white to slighlty brown. Oh yea I had the door cracked to the stove with the shop vac hose shoved up there. Began feeding the brush down the thing and kept adding poles tighting them together so I Did'nt lose one. ran the brush in and out 2 times and called it good. I could definitly feel the croesote at the top but after three feeet of so you could realy feel the flue was clean. Got off the the roof and turned the vac off and peered inside there was very little black junk at all maybe a shot glass full if that.

So after 1 cord of pine 1/2cord of elm and 1/2 cord of cottonwood I would say I have an excellent draft and good buring habits. the stright flue probably helps too.


I'm starting to like this energy independence

 

[michael]

So after 1 cord of pine 1/2cord of elm and 1/2 cord of cottonwood

That's all there is to burn in your parts???

Where about in the country do you live?

Once you get into some hickory, oak and red maple, you'll think you have a whole different stove.

 

[JAred]

Because those woods will burn hotter? or do they make more mess in the flue?

I live in northern colorado and hard wood is sort of a delicacy. I had maybe 40 large splits of black walnut that stuff was some good fire wood. soooo hot and burned forever very cool looking flames. oh yea our average ambiant humidity is probably 30% so everything is dry unless you find it in a sink of water.

 

[roac]

They burn longer. Pine will warm up a room fast but it won't last as long but since it does burn hot and fast it might build up creosote less.

 

[michael]

Because those woods burn hotter? or do they make more mess in the flue?

Oh they burn MUCH hotter. Check a BTU chart for their exact rankings. There's one floating around here somewhere....I think it's stashed in calculations area??

I would say the elm and cottonwood create as much mess in a flu as any other hard wood, just less BTU's. Burning cottonwood is alot like burning paper. Pine on the other hand can leave dangerous creosote in your chimney. Lots of resin in those logs. Remember what your hands felt like after a baseball game? That's pine tar. Pretty much the same gunk in your chimney after extended burning of the stuff. I'd be real careful about burning too much of it.

As far as one hardwood being better than another. I look at it like this, if I have to cut it down and up, and then haul it to my house and split it, and then stack it, I want the most BTU's for the work I put in. It pretty much all cuts and splits the same, but it don't all burn the same.

 

[michael]

I'm mistaken, there's not a BTU chart for wood on this site that I could find.

Here's one though: (broken link removed to http://www.woodheat.org/firewood/firewood.htm)

I think it's an English site as I don't recognize some of the woods. There's a better one floating around on the web somewhere.

 

[JAred]

I suppose if you had a bunch of elbows and lots of single wall pipe running up the room and burnt pine all the time I could see how you would need to clean your chimney every month. I fellow at work has to run the brush thru his at last once a month or his 6'' pipe will clog shut! the str8 shot I have thats inside the house and 25' long breathes like a sprinter. Another fellow at work used to heat is mountain home exclusivly with two stoves and pine. He cleaned his flues all the time and had two chimney fires! he warns me every time we talk wood burning about pine. I think it's cold chimneys that have too many bends!

 

[roac]

Just because they give off more btu's than softwood does not say they burn hotter. The increased btu output occurs over a longer burn time. Pine will burn hot much easier than the hardwoods, but the hardwoods can burn as hot but because they are hard it isn't as easy as pine. People like the burn times for hardwoods but for a quick heat up pine is best. As far as creosote michael, jared just cleaned his chimney and it had hardly any creosote...

 

[JAred]

I get overnight burns with my hampton HI300 packed to the glass with flour dry pine. I load at about 10:30pm and damper er down and wake up at 6am and bring the coals up front and let them burn up a little before I load another one and head to work.



My draft is better than anybodys! sorry I just had to say it

 

[JAred]

Hey Elk,

sorry Went a little off topic there...... but how much creosote did you get out of your flue?

 

[elkimmeg]

The flue liner was ok but I still ran my cleaner up it anyways. Less than a coffee can
The most was not actually in the flue, but by the ash cleanout door. Since it only gets warm,
I RTV caulked it shut. That should take care of the leaking.

 

[michael]

I can't claim to have any particulars with regard to relative creosote production (IMO, there are too many other variables involved.), BUT, elm and RED maple have just about the SAME stored heat capacity. Here in the east, I wouldn't want either of 'em in any load of wood that I was paying for, unless I was getting a super deal on it.

Are you nuts man? Red and sugar maple burn hotter than blue blazes. Very near oak and hickory in my oppinion.

Are you sure you're not thinking of silver maple. It has smooth silver colored bark when young and shaggy bark when mature. The split wood is very pale, almost white in color. It burns much quicker than red or sugar.

I burn sugar, red and silver maple, along with some oak and hickory mixed in. I'll burn red exclusively any day though.

 

[Sandor]

Guys, ALL wood has nearly the same BTU content per POUND. Obviously, a dry piece of oak is heavier than pine of the same size, and therefor has more stored energy.

I have burnt ALOT of pine with no problems. I beleive the trick is to burn it on the hot side to combust the nasties (like pitch) before it goes up the chimney. The pitch is flammable and contains energy.

I will admit that I check my stack outside about every hour to make sure I'm getting a smokeless burn.

 

[fbelec]

hey elk do you think all ash cleanouts are leaky enough to cause a problem?
my cleanout is outside because it's a outside chimney
it's about 10 feet below the connector pipe. in your opinion should i seal it for the heating season?

 

[elkimmeg]

Lets put it this way if your draft pulls air threw the bad cleanout door fitting and not the stove , the stove is not going to
function as well. Yes by all means seal that doo. Duct tape, Caulk does not matter, it is far enough away. heat is a non factor
Thid could improve your draft extend burn times and only help your stove's preformance

 

[wg_bent]

I can't claim to have any particulars with regard to relative creosote production (IMO, there are too many other variables involved.), BUT, elm and RED maple have just about the SAME stored heat capacity. Here in the east, I wouldn't want either of 'em in any load of wood that I was paying for, unless I was getting a super deal on it.

Are you nuts man? Red and sugar maple burn hotter than blue blazes. Very near oak and hickory in my oppinion.

Are you sure you're not thinking of silver maple. It has smooth silver colored bark when young and shaggy bark when mature. The split wood is very pale, almost white in color. It burns much quicker than red or sugar.

I burn sugar, red and silver maple, along with some oak and hickory mixed in. I'll burn red exclusively any day though.

Well, so far most of what I've burned has been Elm, cherry, and ash. By far, the best burning of them is the Elm. In this context.. (ouch ouch this hurts....) I like Elm.