Chimney Cleaning

After using your fireplace or wood stove, you need to clean up to be ready for the next time. Here’s how to clean your fireplace or wood stove.

At least once each year you should have your chimney checked and cleaned if necessary, by a chimney professional.

If your stove seems to work okay once you get it going, but smokes when you are done using it, as the fire is going out, here are some possibilities.

Since there are countless different stove models in the field, each with its unique characteristics, it is beyond the scope of this book to cover the fine points of wood stove operation. But here are some general tips for all wood burners. A continuation of the Tips: 4 - 7

All EPA-certified stoves have certain elements in common: Each incorporates a much-improved method of injecting combustion air into the firebox of the stove. The goal is to provide air in all the right places, to maximize the mixture of air and fuel, thereby maximizing combustion.

As a general rule, in any case of fireplace odors, a chimney cleaning is in order if you haven’t had it done recently (and certainly, if it has been over a year and you use the fireplace). A buildup of soot in the chimney will increase odor problems significantly.

Did the crown erode and let water in? Did the mortar weaken, allowing the crown to settle… causing a cracked crown letting more water in.

The number of damaged chimneys that homeowners are unaware of is staggering.

Soot stains over a fireplace can ruin a focal point in a room and detract from the beauty of the stone, tile, or brick facing. Long thought to be irremovable, there are some new techniques and products that can do the job.

Some tips that a homeowner can use when checking a chimney.