A clean chimney means a safer home. Using your fireplace causes buildup inside the chimney that if left untreated for too long, can cause fires and lead to more pollution. By scheduling regular cleaning with your chimney sweep in Roanoke, you can ensure a safer home for you family and an overall better experience from your fireplace and chimney.
What Does a Chimney Sweep Do?
This process is more than just cleaning the chimney. The process starts with a full inspection of the entire unit with a state-of-the-art video system. This is done to determine the amount of buildup, and to see if there is any structural damage that requires repairs. After the inspection, the cleaning starts, and there will be a comprehensive and complete removal of the creosote deposits that have built up throughout ever part of the chimney’s system.
A chimney sweep uses specialized tools and brushes to clear away buildup, soot and anything blocking the chimney. They’ll remove any of those from within the fireplace, the chimney’s liner, cap, and throat of the chimney. This is all inclusive, which means it will service the other vital parts of the chimney like the smoke chamber, damper, and firebox. All of the ash will also be removed from your fireplace using specialized soot vacuums.
How Often Should Your Chimney Be Swept?
Keeping creosote buildup to a minimum is important to keeping your chimney safe and maintained. All chimneys are different, based on how much they’re used and how they’re built, and getting regular inspections makes sure their structural integrity is maintained. Based off of usage and how quickly they collect buildup, some chimneys might require more than one sweep per year.
The Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA) suggests that open masonry fireplaces get swept if there is 1/8” of buildup in the system. Heavy buildup of creosote can not only contribute to air pollution, but also be a dangerous fire hazard. Chimney fires can quickly spread into your home, and even that small amount of buildup is enough to create this hazard. An inspection from your chimney sweep in Roanoke can identify some of these dangers, and they should also be able to determine if those inspections and sweeps are required more often than once per year.
How Do I Know If My Chimney Needs to be Swept?
If you are unsure if your chimney is due for a sweep, an inspection, or both, there are a few cues that can show you that it’s time to call a chimney sweep. If your fireplace is turning back, or if there are small black deposits in the cavity of the chimney, it’s likely time for an inspection. Another warning sign is that there is a strong smell of smoke inside your home after the fireplace has been used.
The fireplace is a great asset to any home, but making sure the proper safety measures are taken around it are crucial. For more information on how to get your chimney swept, creosote buildup, or anything else regarding the process, reach out to the experts at Patriot Chimney today.
Recent Comments