Last month I cleaned a chimney that hadn't been swept since 1987 and the homeowner argued I was being too thorough

After pulling out 3 full buckets of creosote and a dead squirrel the guy told me his grandpa always said a light scrape was good enough and now I'm wondering how many houses in this town are ticking time bombs waiting to catch fire.

2 comments

2 Comments

drew96517d agoProlific Poster

That grandpa logic is wild considering how much built up creosote can go up in flames with just one good hot fire. Three full buckets is insane, that chimney was basically a fire waiting to happen with a few layers of tar and squirrel bones. Bet half the older houses in that town haven't been touched since the 80s either, just running on old man advice and good luck. You probably saved that guy's whole roof and he didn't even realize it.

troythompson17d ago

Did you ever see a chimney fire in person? I had one years ago at my own place and it sounded like a freight train coming through the roof. That creosote build up is no joke. After that I started burning nothing but well seasoned hardwood and got in the habit of a yearly cleaning myself. You can buy a cheap rod kit and a set of brushes for less than one service call, and it beats guessing if the guy you hire actually did the job right.