Shoutout to the guy in Boise who showed me his camera setup last fall

I used to think a good flashlight and a mirror were enough to check a flue. That was my way for years, and I missed a lot of small cracks and gaps in the mortar. Then, at a job in Boise, another sweep I was working with pulled out a small inspection camera on a long, bendy pole. He let me use it, and seeing that clear video feed of the entire chimney liner was a game changer. I bought my own the next week, a basic model for about $400. Now I use it on every single inspection. It shows me things I could never see before, like hairline fractures starting near the top. It makes my reports way more accurate for the homeowner. Has anyone else made the switch to a camera, and which brand are you using?

3 comments

3 Comments

phoenix_perez9723d ago

That part about seeing things you could never see before really hits home. It's like we all have these old ways of doing things that feel fine until you see the better tool in action. I see it with guys using old scan tools at my shop when the new ones can show live data graphs. You don't know what you're missing until you actually see it clear. Makes you wonder what else we're all doing the hard way just because it's how we learned. What was the hardest habit for you to break after getting the camera?

logan20523d ago

My buddy who works on HVAC systems had the same thing. He was so used to just listening for leaks and checking gauges. First time he used a thermal camera, he found a tiny leak in an evaporator coil he would've missed for days. He said the hardest part was trusting the screen over his ears, like his old methods felt more real even when they were slower. Took him a whole week to stop double checking everything the old way first. What about you, did you have a moment like that?

carr.brooke15d ago

A whole week to trust the camera... that's wild.