How Often Should I Clean My Chimney?
A chimney sweep will clean and remove built-up creosote, debris and soot from your chimney liner. It is important to have your chimney cleaned, because it will keep your chimney performing properly and keep your family safe and healthy.
How often should the chimney be cleaned?
The Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA) recommends that the chimney should be cleaned when there is approximately 1/8” of soot buildup.
How would a homeowner know if there is 1/8” of built-up soot in their chimney?
It is very difficult for a homeowner to know if there is built-up soot in their chimney. A professional chimney sweep technician can examine the chimney and determine if the chimney should be cleaned. The chimney sweep technician will also be able to examine the chimney liner for any cracks or damages. This is important as the repairs can be done at the same time the chimney liner is cleaned.
A chimney should be cleaned at least once a year. The best time of year to have your chimney cleaned is summer or before fall begins. This will have your chimney cleaned, maintained and repaired before the heating season begins. A homeowner should never neglect having the chimney cleaned. Removing creosote, soot and debris from the chimney will keep your chimney safe and performing properly.
Safeside Chimney is the professional chimney sweep to call. Our technicians will examine the chimney for any damages or cracks, then repair them immediately. The technician will clean the chimney thoroughly. Call Safeside Chimney to schedule your annual chimney sweep.
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What is a Chimney Sweep?
Most people think a chimney sweep is a person that sweeps the chimney. This is true, but this isn’t the only thing a chimney sweeper does. This is a profession that needs training and education. A person can’t just climb on a roof and sweep a chimney. It isn’t that easy!
Years and years ago children were used to sweep chimneys. Poor orphan children were used as they were small enough to fit into the chimney. Many children were scared of the dark area and men would light a fire under the children to get them to climb upward to clean the chimney. That is where the old phrase “light a fire under you” came from. Laws changed and children were stopped in the use of cleaning a chimney.
A chimney sweep is a professional that is a technician that inspects, installs, cleans and keeps your chimney performing and functionally properly. There is a lot of training a chimney sweeper must go through. Each state has codes that must be enforced for the safety of the homeowner. These codes are enforced and each chimney sweep must be educated on these codes.
There are tools and equipment that is used by a chimney sweep. Each chimney sweeper must learn how to use and operate each tool. A qualified chimney sweep should be certified and to be certified, then they must attend classes of certification. These classes will teach the chimney sweep the correct way to clean, install and service all chimneys.
If your chimney liner has a crack, then that must be repaired by the chimney sweeper. He isn’t going to sweep the crack, but he will repair it. This is all taught to the sweeper. Long are the days when a chimney sweeper used a broom to clean the chimney. Times have changed and there is new technology available to clean the chimney out safely and effectively.
A chimney sweep is also an inspector. The sweeper will inspect a chimney for damages, safety and make sure the chimney is ready to be used. If the chimney needs cleaning, then this will be done. Creosote is often in a chimney and has to be removed. Sometimes the creosote has reached a higher level which requires more than just sweeping and this is all done by the sweeper.
To ensure that you have a qualified chimney sweeper, then you should ask the sweeper if they are certified, trained and insured. The chimney sweeper will gladly tell you the information if they are qualified to do your chimney inspection and work.
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Chimney Cleaning Process
The chimney cleaning process doesn’t sound like it should be much work, but not only is it detailed, but important. The chimney should be cleaned regularly and by certified cleaners. The first step in the chimney cleaning process is an inspection. The inspection will determine if there are any repairs that need to be done as well as how built up the creosote is in the chimney.
Once the inspection has been performed, then the technician will start the chimney cleaning. The technician will lay out floor protectors around the fireplace or wood source to protect your floor. The technician will climb on top of your room and start from the top, then work their way down. The cleaning will be done to the damper, chamber and flue. If your chimney doesn’t have a liner system, then an insert device is used by the technician to clean the liner system thoroughly.
A HEPA soot vacuum can be used to remove any ash or particles in the fireplace and chimney. The HEPA filter will trap all dust and dirt particles leaving the homeowners home free of any particles. The HEPA soot vacuum is specially designed for chimney cleaning as it will leave your chimney clean, but also homeowners won’t see a trace of the chimneys soot in the home when the cleaning is taking place or after the job has been performed.
Chimney cleaning should be performed by professionals. It involves climbing on the roof and handling harmful toxins that are in the chimney. It should never be done by anyone that hasn’t been certified and trained. The cost is affordable and it will keep a home heating properly and keeping families safe. The cleaning process can take up to two hours to be performed and only needs to be annually, depending on the use of the heating source.
A chimney should be done after the summer months. This will have your fireplace ready to go when the cold days start to approach. The cleaning process is an important maintenance that is needed to keep your home heating producing effective heat.
For more information on your chimney and duct cleaning experts, click here!
Chimney Cleaning Cost
There is nothing better than enjoying a nice toasty fire on a cold winter’s day. While enjoying a cozy fire your fireplace is leaving creosote and ash. Having the chimney cleaned will remove the ash and creosote leaving your fireplace free from dangers and leaving the air in your home cleaner. Chimney cleaning has improved drastically over the years. Professional chimney cleaners can do the job quick and easy.
The main question that is asked by customers is what will chimney cleaning cost?
While each chimney is different and the cost would be different, the first thing is to have the chimney inspected first. The inspection will determine if there is any repairs that need to be done to the chimney. It will also determine how thick the creosote. Creosote should be removed and cleaned when it reaches 1/8 inches.
If the creosote goes above 1/8 inch, then it can cause a fire and doesn’t allow the fire to burn effectively. Creosote can also cause the airflow in the chimney to become blocked causing carbon monoxide to leak in the home. Carbon monoxide is deadly and a silent killer. You can’t smell carbon monoxide. This is why it is important to have your chimney cleaned. Your life is worth more than the cost of having the cleaning performed.
Other factors that will determine the chimney cleaning cost is how often you use your fireplace. If you use the fireplace often, then you may need to have the chimney cleaned more than once a year. If you occasionally use the fireplace, then once a year cleaning is appropriate. The type of creosote buildup can also play a factor in the cost of cleaning. Creosote is formed from the type of wood you burn in your fireplace and the moisture that is in the wood.
The average chimney cleaning cost is quite reasonable and we strive to keep our prices low and quality high.
For a detailed cost breakdown click here Chimney Cleaning Cost. It is important for your chimney and your family.
Connecticut Best Business Guide: Control Your Heating Costs
Control Your Heating Costs
The ever-increasing cost of oil has many Americans fearful of the price they will pay to heat their homes this coming winter. Though the market is subject to fluctuation, industry experts predict that consumers will spend between $3,000 and $4,000 if they opt to continue heating with oil. However, as global warming continues, there are alternatives that not only will save consumers money but also promote the philosophy of saving green by going green. At Safeside Chimney, we offer the alternative of wood
stoves and pellet stoves.
Read more about Safeside Chimney and receive discount coupons here!
Windsor Chimney Declogging
Safeside Recommended to Windsor Residents
When it comes to your chimney, it is important to maintain the cleanliness for the safety of you and your family. Recently, a customer in Windsor contacted us because a friend of theirs recommended our services. We love hearing our customers are so satisfied with our work that they recommend us to friends and family.
Chimney Declogging Windsor
This particular customer called because soot was backing up to the furnace unit and onto the floor in their basement. Luckily the furnace shut itself down without causing damage to the appliance. We found the chimney completely clogged with soot. The customer never realized that they should sweep the heating flues on a regular basis. In this case, we had to break into the chimney to remove a soot clog that prevented the unit from drafting and then brick it back up. This is not a job for the average handyman; a certified chimney professional is recommended to perform such cleanings and inspections.Our client was very pleased that we were able to come out the same day we were contacted, as not only was their heat shut off, but the water heater vents into the same chimney flue, and no one likes cold showers!
Safeside Here For Your Safety
In addition to the danger and damage from backed up fine oil soot, carbon monoxide, a natural byproduct of combustion, is not able to draft up a clogged flue and could fill the basement or home to a dangerous level. This Windsor family now knows to sweep their heating flues, especially the oil heat on a regular basis and invited us to their rental property to clean and inspect the chimney. In order to prevent this danger and ensure your safety, call us at Safeside Chimney today!
Chimney Cleaning Project in New Haven
Home Inspection recommends immediate Chimney Cleaning in New Haven
Keep Your Family Safe by Cleaning your Chimney
At Safeside Chimney, our goal is to provide you with a cleaner chimney, which directly relates to your safety. If your chimney is not cleaned properly or even at all, creosote can build up on the exterior of the firebox and ignite, causing a fire between it and the chimney shell. To prevent a dangerous fire from happening in your home, call us at Safeside Chimney, like one of our recent customers did in New Haven.
This customer bought a lovely home with a beautiful stone chimney. During the purchasing process, the home inspector noted that the chimney was in fair condition, but also wrote up the disclaimer; to call a chimney service company to inspect in detail. Unfortunately the home buyer didn’t have a chimney company out prior to the closing.
Safeside Chimney is Here to Help
After moving in, the homeowner called us to inspect the fireplace. After vacuuming up soot and removing the firewood grate, we found that not only was the firebox excessively rusty but that it had perforated in multiple spots allowing heat and gases to escape. This was dangerous, because as noted above, it allows for creosote to build up and potentially cause a fire. Chimneys built with a metal insert do not have the standard 8 inch of masonry around the firebox; generally the box relies on air space to prevent heat transfer to the brick shell , which is only 4 inches deep. There is a combustible wall up against the backside of that thin masonry shell.
This was a very unsafe system and luckily the owner followed through on the home inspectors recommendation to have one of our professionals at Safeside Chimney evaluate it prior to using it. Ideally, this should have been done prior to closing on the home, so there would be a possibility to negotiate the cost of this repair with the seller.
Call Safeside if you need Chimney Cleaning in New Haven!
