Is it time to clean the chimney flues?

[rockandroller]

Chimney is about 25 feet tall, runs from the basement straight up the middle of our two story log house.

We bought the house Oct 2011. Previous owners allegedly had the chimney swept June 2011.
They probably burnt a little wood from sept to mid-oct, though it was a VERY WARM September last year.
I can't say how much they burnt, or what... We spent the last year using ONLY the electric furnace, did not have time to mess with any wood!

Anyway, there is a wood-burning forced air furnace (Scotty SS) and we want to burn 3 or 4 cords of dry maple and birch in it this season.
There is also a small ENVIRO 1000 wood stove in the living room, but we do not plan to use it unless the power goes out.

I got up on the roof and checked out the chimney yesterday, bricks & flashing look OK.
The end cap on the wood furnace stack wasn't removable without re-sealing, so I didn't take it off (just stuck a camera down).
Was a bit disappointed it didn't have any spark arrestor mesh, and was open to birds, etc - but happily it looks clear of debris.

The end cap on the woodstove stack was nicker, and came off with a screw.
I was somewhat disappointed to see it had what looked like "EL-CHEAPO" corrugated flex liner riveted inside.
I understand that "smooth interior" flex liner is a superior product, in terms of maintenance.
I'm not sure that this is even steel, looks a bit like aluminum ( and I neglected to bring a magnet when I went up to inspect)

My question... given that it was supposedly cleaned the previous June, and likely didn't see even a month of burning since, would it most likely be OK to postpone cleaning before this season, and just start burning wood?

I've never cleaned one of these, and all the local sweeps are booked solid the next few weeks.
I want to be prudent, but not too paranoid if there is no reason! What do you say?


View attachment 256121
the chimney


View attachment 256122
looking down furnace flue, daylight

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looking down furnace flue, flash foto

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looking down furnace flue, flash foto zoomed to see further down

View attachment 256125
The liner in the woodstove flue

 

[rockandroller]

BTW, here is a look down the 'woodstove' flue - looks relatively clean, and we're not likely to use it more than once or twice this year ( only if there is a power outage...)

View attachment 256128

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I'm not really happy with that thin corrugated liner, but I guess we're stuck with it for now.
I have to wonder why they installed it at all - but probably the solid 'liner' its riveted into is only the fitting for the end-cap?

Unfortunate we got 'zero' documentation on this house, previous owners promised us a "drawerful" but never delivered ....

 

[H 2 H]

I do mine first of June every year unless it's raining and gets done when it stops raining

 

[Ductape]

Both look in decent shape. A little build-up @ the joints of the furnace flue, but not much. If they were mine I'd go ahead and burn. Do you have good, seasoned wood, or are you buying wood and taking the sellers word that its seasoned? I don't see any problem with having a flex liner in the stove flue. It looks like stainless to me.

With all that said, I sweep mine once in the fall, and once mid-heating season when conditions allow.

If you have already been up to inspect...... why not buy the appropriate brush(s) and rods and sweep them yourself?

 

[stihly dan]

Just clean it. can't hurt and have a piece of mind.

 

[brenndatomu]

Both look in decent shape. A little build-up @ the joints of the furnace flue, but not much. If they were mine I'd go ahead and burn. Do you have good, seasoned wood, or are you buying wood and taking the sellers word that its seasoned? I don't see any problem with having a flex liner in the stove flue. It looks like stainless to me.

With all that said, I sweep mine once in the fall, and once mid-heating season when conditions allow.

If you have already been up to inspect...... why not buy the appropriate brush(s) and rods and sweep them yourself?

Just clean it. can't hurt and have a piece of mind.

+1 Doesn't look too bad, I'd run it, just have your sweep come whenever he can. If you are gonna buy a brush to DIY, get a plastic one. The chimney guy I talked to said some liners are thin enough for a steel brush to poke through. Also said steel brush on a stainless liner can make it rust.

 

[Somesawguy]

I'd run it. Do a few hot burns to clean it out a bit. If you're worried, a cleaning wouldn't hurt anything.

 

[Dalmatian90]

From what I see, it looks fine.

My "gold standard" is to setup a good, strong flashlight in the bottom (or take the cleanout at the bottom off it's an outside metal pipe) and look down from the top. Have someone turn it off at the bottom, and then look down with your own flashlight.

Of course that's easier said then done when dealing with fireplaces (damper and smoke shelf in the way) and metal pipes that go off at odd/long angles inside. But for straight up and down pipes it's easy squeezy.

My general advice is whenever you're learning a new chimney / stove / wood supply / person burning , check it frequently (whenever weather allows) until you get a good sense if you need to clean twice a year, once a year, or every few years. If you change one of those -- like put in a new stove -- start checking again.

 

[rockandroller]

Thanks very much for all the feedback!

I don't know anything about this equipment, and have had very little time up to now to learn about it.
I'll have to find out what kind and size of brush is right for the main wood furnace flu, then probably I'll be OK with tackling it.
Pipe is 7 inches in diameter, which I hope is a fairly standard size!

Tomorrow I'll buy some proper roof sealant (will need to reseal the end cap after it comes off!) - along with a mirror and another flashlight for inspection.

hmmmm.. maybe I should just buy a proper high-quality end cap for that flue - one that has the cage to keep birds out and sparks in, and some normal hardware for easy maintenance!

Looks like a bit of a messy job downstairs ahead if I'm also gonna to be cleaning the pipes from the furnace to the chimney (a couple of 90 degree bends, and its all held together with metal tape, with various heat shields attached). Doesn't look "designed with maintenance in mind"

I'm quite reluctant to even bother with the smaller "wood-stove" this year - that liner looks like flimsy aluminum ( will try to verify that with a magnet) - and if it is steel then it must be the cheapest steel liner ever sold. :msp_mad:
I have to wonder if it was originally installed like that, or if perhaps the corrugated liner was added later after a chimney fire or some shoddy materials made the 'original' flue leak?
(If there IS an original flue - my suspicion now is that the pipe it is riveted into is just the chimney cap mount pipe!)

I suppose I might get a clue about that if I disassemble the pipes connecting the woodstove to the chimney.
Tho I'd much prefer not to bother with that extra mess... theoretically that connector pipe should be relatively CLEAN compared to the top end of the chimney, right?

Would be nice to have that little woodstove available if the power goes out, of course! We don't have a generator...

 

[unclemoustache]

Yes, do it yourself. There's nothing to it, really. Just like wiping your rear - keep wiping until it's clean - only you use slightly different equipment. I wouldn't advise using toilet paper on your chimney, nor a steel brush on your rear. :msp_scared:

 

[howellhandmade]

Looks like a standard SS flex liner for the woodstove -- same thing I have in my chimney. It's fine, especially when there's no room for anything more. Should last a long time.