How many beautiful old fireplaces and chimneys go unused in today’s homes? We’ve likely all visited friends or family whose fireplace has been sitting untouched for years. Why not fire it up? For many, caution holds them back: “We heard the chimney is cracked,” or “The previous homeowners didn’t build fires.” This thinking spawns fear and worry. The result—a major appliance, originally built as the home’s centerpiece, goes dormant. Enter the modern chimney sweep—modest magicians capable of giving rebirth to your home. Let’s see what these professionals do to make your wood stove or fireplace fully functional again.
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) recognizes three levels of fireplace and chimney inspections. Sweeps are the professionals who come to your house to conduct these inspections and clean your chimney or stovepipe.
One such Duluth-area sweep is Paul Webster, who started work in the field over 40 years ago when his mom saw chimney sweeping tools for sale in the classifieds, and bought a set for her then 18-year-old son. Today his company, Paul Webster Industrial Arts, operates the length of the North Shore.
Webster suggests homeowners get a level 2 inspection to put their mind at ease. This involves photography of the inside of the chimney or stove pipe, as well as inspection of the fire box and flue, and the exterior portion of the chimney. “Most sweeps are doing level 2 inspections,” says Webster. A level 2 inspection ends at video, and at “what you can reasonably get your hands on,” Webster explains.
Level 3 is when a sweep disassembles the chimney to get a look at it. “You disassemble all or part of the chimney, so nobody ever wants to do a level 3 inspection unless there’s been something bad,” suggests Webster, who is also a well-known local blacksmith. While some sweeps just clean and inspect, Webster builds, repairs, and relines chimneys that are structurally impaired. Some years he has placed as many as 22 tons of masonry material singlehandedly.
The simplest chimney inspection of all is a level 1 sweep. According to Levi Bruckelmyer, general manager of Midtown Chimney Sweeps in Duluth. “A level 1 is the routine inspection that a technician performs whenever they sweep your chimney. Level 1 inspections satisfy the annual inspection requirement per NFPA 14.2.”
Bruckelmyer says the amount of wood you burn is a consideration for sweeping periodicity: “The NFPA recommends getting an inspection every two cord of wood burned, or annually.” The wood you burn is key. Bruckelmyer says what he’s looking for in a sweep is a “really fine, powdery soot—that means you’re doing everything right with your burns.”
Conversely, if Bruckelmyer finds a lot of creosote, “A big part of that is moisture in the wood you’re burning.”
For Webster, “Burning solid fuels is an art form.” People who are burning unseasoned wood are putting flammable, sticky creosote inside their chimneys. “Anything over a pint will potentially take your house if it collects in the wrong area,” says Webster. “If I get a quart of creosote, there’s going to need to be some teaching about how to burn properly.” Webster has even seen horror stories: “I’ve pulled as many as 10 gallons of creosote from a 30-foot chimney. That’s 20 times over enough to take the building.”
Bruckelmyer points out that getting your chimney cleaned is not only a safety measure; sweeping can increase your stove’s efficiency too. Woodstoves can’t burn as well when air isn’t being pulled through the stovepipe freely (“choking the chimney”). Thus, cleaning creosote and ash buildup out of your chimney will create hotter, more efficient fires.
Both Webster and Bruckelmyer go through the same thing every October—everyone calls at once looking for service as soon as the weather gets cold. “That’s the romantic thing. ‘Oh, it’s time to clean the chimney because it’s time to fire up.’ And that creates this terrible bottleneck,” says Webster, who also works throughout the winter. “I find myself doing a fair amount of emergency sweeps come winter. That’s when I find the worst things. After November is when I find the most horrifying facts.” Get your sweep done in the spring! Webster and Bruckelmyer both say April and May are good months for sweeping.
Chimney sweeps have a long legacy (historians date the profession to the 16th century), and not always a safe one. The use of small children (“climbing boys”) to clean chimneys was common in 18th century England, as the industrial revolution meant wealthier homes could employ chimney construction to replace the traditional open fire. The young sweeps were often orphans, or poor children sold into the job by their parents. They spent their days covered in soot, and were prone to contracting industrial cancer.
So do chimney sweeps consider their work dangerous today? For Webster, who spends a lot of time climbing onto people’s roofs, the danger is all measured in terms of exposures and risk factors. “What you’re basically trying to do is eliminate as much exposure as you can, and minimize the risk factors. You’re getting rid of as many variables as possible that can surprise you.” Webster adds that sweeps need to have a high-risk tolerance, and an understanding of risk management. “And really, really good reflexes. You don’t want to be a bumbler and go up there on five different rooftops a day. Not a good idea.”
Sweeping is generally done from inside the house, inserting instruments where the woodstove connects to the stove pipe, or from the fireplace up. With today’s cameras, inspections can also generally be done from inside.
Webster writes a condition report at every inspection. “I can let you know all the things that are good and bad about your chimney, and I will.” But that’s only half the service. “The second phase of the documentation that I give during an inspection is what I call ‘proposal for remedy.’ I’ll break things down item by item, starting with chief priority in terms of safety and functionality, and then going all the way down to aesthetics. I’ll then do the remedies that I can offer.”
Webster has a recommendation for all customers: Be present when the sweep does their work. “That’s one of my pet peeves, when people want me to do a sweep, or an inspection, and they’re not there for it. The vast majority of information can be transferred best when it’s fresh. When the customer is there, you can actually point and say ‘This is what’s going on. This let’s me know that you had two chimney fires in here before.’ It’s very important to get your money’s worth from your certified chimney professional. It’s important to be there,” explains Webster.
Furthermore, not only chimneys with wood-burning appliances need to be inspected. While water heaters, boilers, or furnaces that vent into chimneys don’t produce soot or creosote, the chimney still needs annual inspection. If your chimney doesn’t have a metal liner, it’s a code violation, and “just not okay,” according to Webster. “The moisture gets above the roof line, or above the attic line, where it freezes and thaws. It hydraulically destroys the chimney,” Webster says.
Fireplaces and chimneys, like everything else in our homes, require maintenance. Meanwhile, people are increasingly looking to use wood heat as energy prices raise. For Webster, “I think people are getting a gut feeling that solid fuels are going to be part of how we afford to heat going into the next 30 or 40 years.” If that sounds like you, get a professional to come inspect and clean your chimney, and sleep tight in your beautiful warm home. And next time call in May, not October.