DIY Chimney Sweep
The cold weather is behind us so it is time to clean our wood heater to get it ready for next winter. I like to do this job early before it gets too hot to be on the roof. These are the tools I use.
Six-inch diameter wire scrub brush
Extension rods
Two pair of pliers
Shop vacuum cleaner
Step 1
Loosen the flue at the heater and place a bucket between the heater and the flue. This prevents making a mess in the house.
Step 2
Fasten the extension rods to the brush and make sure they are tight. You will have a big problem if a connection comes loose and gets stuck in the chimney. Remove the chimney cap.
Step 3
Scrub the inside of the flue from top to bottom. I use short scrubbing motions from top to bottom and repeat the processes three to four times and replace the cover.
Step 4
Remove the ash bucket and vacuum any residue from the heater and the fire box.
That is all there is too it. The whole job took about half an hour. We burn oak all winter so we only get about a 2 cups of creosote in the flue, but cleaning the heater every year provides peace of mind knowing that we will not have a chimney fire next winter.
Have a great day! Every comment is up-voted to show our appreciation and thanks for your up-vote, Tim and Joann.
Nice only 2 cups! Once a year cleaning is all that is needed!
Thank you for this. I hope to have a wood heater someday. @ironshield
I do the chimney sweeping in our house every year. Something must have been up with the wood we used, because the creosote was caked on this time around. We’re also having it inspected today (most likely for the first time since it has been installed).
Thanks for the reminder. I need to get ours cleaned out
We do our chimneys when we think they need them. Sometimes we did them 2 - 3 a season with the old Vermont Castings stoves. Since we replaced the VC with Pacific Energy stoves, we just check once a year, but usually they don't need the brush at all. But we always check before the season starts.
Neat!
My parents always had a wood-stove, and this was a yearly chore for them
too. Here in the south we barely even need winter heat of any kind, so installing a wood-stove, (as much as I would LOVE to have one), just isnt practical.