up on the rooftop...

[j7art2]

I've got a 12x12 pitch chalet style house with a 20-25 foot chimney leading to my wood furnace in the basement. The chimney runs along side the back of the house, about 3 feet from the peak.

I had to pay a friend go up there and clean it for me this summer. He's significantly smaller than I, and and has greater testicular fortitude than I (I'm afraid of heights! Fell out of a tree as a kid and got dinged up pretty bad).

Anyway, on his way down, he broke my 24' extension ladder in half.

Being that I'm afraid of heights, and that's pretty high up, I need to figure out a way to safely get onto the roof and be able to clean the chimney myself.

Getting a new extension ladder shouldn't be an issue since I'm an auction junkie and can pick one up virtually anywhere.

The two things I think would be very beneficial to me though is something to hold my ladder so it can't sway. Do they make a square bracket of sorts that will slip over a chimney and have a ladder hook on it?

I'm also considering a climbing harness, but don't know how or where I'd attach it.

Any suggestions?

 

[j7art2]

 

[Chimney Smoke]

Clean it from the bottom up?

 

[j7art2]

The cleanout is in the basement, and the door is about 6"x6".

I honestly wish I could. It's the smallest cleanout I've ever seen.

 

[salecker]

An older than me guy i know showed me his idea for chimney cleaning.
He had a bracket on the top of his chimney with a pulley in the middle.Then he had some stainless steel aircraft cable that ran up the chimney and back down through the pulley.At the bottom of his chimney he had a longer than normal clean-out.In this clean-out his brush with a bunch of weight attached would stay inside the chimney on the end of the cabal.To clean the chimney he would remove the bottom of his clean-out,place a bucket under it,begin pulling his brush up the chimney,when it got to the stop on his cable he would let the weighted brush come back down.Then all he had to do is replace the bottom of his clean-out and take the bucket of sweepings outside and dump.
He had it down to a science,never got cold,never needed his ladder,never even had to let his fire go out to clean the chimney.
Thomas

 

[firefighterjake]

http://www.swiftchimneycleaner.com/

Sounds like this may not work in a chimney with a liner though . . . more of a traditional masonry chimney with clay liner.

 

[j7art2]

Mine is clay. I had thought about getting this, but without actually getting in the roof and peering down, I can't tell if I've gotten everything and wouldn't be able to see damage. Also, ho does the chimney cap mount onto that top pulley?

I'm not ruling it out completely, but I have some reservations.

 

[mustash29]

I have a stabilizer on my 28' extension ladder like this:

(broken link removed)

It helps a lot with stability weather you are crawling onto a roof or leaning against the walls. It takes all 25' of it (max extension) to reach my peaks.

As always, make sure you maintain proper ladder safety. Your shoulders should remain between the ladder rails to maintain balance. Ensure the base is secure and properly positioned so you have the correct angle on the ladder. Maintain 3 points of contact.

 

[AroostookDave]

Have you thought about a rotary chimney cleaning tool? You attach to a drill and clean from the cleanout at the base of the chimney.

Here's one version at Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Gardus-RCH205-Rotary-Chimney-Cleaning/dp/B0010H5JXA

 

[SKIN052]

I will climb anything, really I'll try anything, look at my avatar. No real super easy way to do this other than installing a device like mentioned by firefighterjake. One option is get on the roof on the low side, take a smaller ladder, maybe a step ladder and lean it against the chimney on the high side. I actually think leaving a aircraft type wire in the chimney at all times is the way to go. Get a pulley mounted at the top and all is good.

 

[BrotherBart]

I will climb anything, really I'll try anything,

 

[Archie]

An older than me guy i know showed me his idea for chimney cleaning.
He had a bracket on the top of his chimney with a pulley in the middle.Then he had some stainless steel aircraft cable that ran up the chimney and back down through the pulley.At the bottom of his chimney he had a longer than normal clean-out.In this clean-out his brush with a bunch of weight attached would stay inside the chimney on the end of the cabal.To clean the chimney he would remove the bottom of his clean-out,place a bucket under it,begin pulling his brush up the chimney,when it got to the stop on his cable he would let the weighted brush come back down.Then all he had to do is replace the bottom of his clean-out and take the bucket of sweepings outside and dump.
He had it down to a science,never got cold,never needed his ladder,never even had to let his fire go out to clean the chimney.
Thomas

Holy cow, I'm doing it all wrong! This sounds great.

 

[mustash29]

How this for a climb?

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[SKIN052]

Would love to have that opportunity. A fellow tradesman worked on the CN tower and said at the top of the needle it would sway 2-3' back and forth, wicked.

 

[jebatty]

A quality, commercial grade ladder does wonders. Cheap ladders are for thrill seekers.

 

[firefighterjake]

A quality, commercial grade ladder does wonders. Cheap ladders are for thrill seekers.

One reason why I bought one of our fire departments old extension ladders when it failed the stress test . . . didn't pass the test . . . but I figure there's very little chance I will put anywhere near the 500-3,000 lb. stress on this ladder in my usage since I don't plan on being on the ladder with two or three other guys all in bunker gear with SCBA packs on.

The ladder is wicked heavy to move by myself . . . but as mentioned . . . I have no fear of it folding up on me.

(broken link removed to http://www.wfrfire.com/ladders/pdf/ladder_test.pdf)

 

[salecker]

Mine is clay. I had thought about getting this, but without actually getting in the roof and peering down, I can't tell if I've gotten everything and wouldn't be able to see damage. Also, ho does the chimney cap mount onto that top pulley?

I'm not ruling it out completely, but I have some reservations.

He had a masonry chimney with some kind of liner in it.It was square on the outside and he had a cap above the pulley system.More like a little roof over his chimney.
If i had a tall chimney i would do the same as he did.Even if it meant building a spacer or a completely different chimney cap.
Thomas

 

[mark cline]

This is what i use , it will get me up 40 ft safely, usually the dog has to go along for the ride.I have 42 ft of pipe which runs down through the house , about 5 ft exposed on the roof.

 

[xman23]

If you think the only way is top down, which is what I like to do. I would get a good extention ladder. Get or make a top stabilizer that engages tight with two sides of the chimney. Secure the bottom with blocking on the ground or deck that prevents the bottom from moving any direction. A good ladder at the correct angle, secured top and bottom is hard to have an issue with. When you get up there a second ladder from the high side of the chimney the roof. I use a little ladder giant, which allows the legs to be at different lengths. Again tie the top of the ladder off.

It can and must be done correctly to be safe. And you must be comfortably with the heights.

 

[CenterTree]

.......

I had to pay a friend go up there and clean it for me this summer. He's significantly smaller than I, and and has greater testicular fortitude than I (I'm afraid of heights! Fell out of a tree as a kid and got dinged up pretty bad).

Anyway, on his way down, he broke my 24' extension ladder in half.....



Any suggestions?

So, exactly how did he break your ladder in half? And did he fall with injury?

--------------


Can you get easier access to the roof from the eave side. Maybe you can get a shorter ladder up to the eave edge (over the rain gutter) and then get some sort of ladder with wheels and hooks. Push it up to the peak , flip it and the hooks will hold it as you "walk" up it. Like a chicken ladder.
http://www.worldstores.co.uk/c/Roof_Ladders.htm