Prepare Your Chimney For Cooler Months in Nashville!

9/2/2016 (Permalink)

Clean out your chimney before the season ends!

September is here! Although autumn doesn't begin until the 22nd of September, we are going to help you prepare early! The temperatures will mellow into a more comfortable range, leaves will begin to fall and before you blink twice, winter will be knocking on our doors! But let's not get ahead of ourselves - we're here to talk about cleaning your chimney in anticipation of cooler nights. So let's get started!

Chimneys need cleaning at least once a year, more often if yours sees more use than average. Autumn is a a great time to check because you don't want to start a fire for the first time in winter without performing maintenance. How do you know if your chimney needs sprucing up? Take a flashlight and look into your chimney. Take a knife and scrape a bit of soot off of the wall. If it is more than 1/8 inches thick, get your gloves on because it's cleaning time!

If this is the first time your fireplace is seeing cleaning materials, be sure to check for nesting animals and critters who may have made a home there!

The next step is to measure the chimney. It's okay to overestimate but try to be as accurate as possible. This can be accomplished by climbing on the roof and measuring down or measuring up through the fireplace. The size and shape of the flue is important to jot down as well. It can be round or square, 6" or 8".

It’s time to grab a chimney brush, goggles, a broom and dustpan and a face mask. Cleaning from the top down with a weighted brush requires up and down motions as you scrape away debris. Cleaning from the bottom up requires a partner on the roof to help scrub with a pulley system. After cleaning there will be lots of debris on the floor. Be careful sweeping and discarding!

Now your chimney is ready for the cooler winter nights!