How to sweep a chimney?

Having a fireplace in winter is a gift. However, to enjoy its warmth and cozy atmosphere, it is essential to clean it. For your fireplace to be properly maintained, last and be at full performance, you must remove soot, a highly flammable substance. If you want to know more about soot, visit our post “What is soot in the chimney, is it dangerous?”

Your chimney will perform at one hundred percent exclusively when it is clean and clear. We tell you how to clean a chimney below.

How to clean the chimney: which technique should I use?

If this is the first time you are faced with this question, you should start by checking if what your chimney is asking for is a maintenance cleaning or a complete cleaning.

At the end of the winter season, it should be deep cleaned at least once a year. As for maintenance cleaning, it should be done once a week during the winter.

What types of chimney sweeping are there?

There are two options when it comes to cleaning a chimney:

• Mechanical chimney sweeping: cleaning is done with a special brush called a hedgehog brush. These brushes incorporate a flexible guide to be able to reach all the points of the chimney.

• Chemical chimney sweeping: cleaning is done by burning certain products. These products are special and originate a chemical reaction when burned, they are the bags and chimney sweeping logs. They are intended to dissolve solid residues (such as soot) and help to carry out maintenance cleaning during the winter.

Mechanical chimney sweeping

We’ve all seen those scenes in the movies of chimney sweeps on the roof, right? Don’t worry, you won’t have to climb on the roof, we tell you how to clean the chimney from your own room.

This chimney sweeping is the right one when we want to do a deep cleaning of the chimney.

Steps to sweep the chimney. Mechanical method:

1. We protect the face of the chimney with paper and plastics.
2. With a brush or broom and your trusty dustpan, we remove the ashes that remain in the fireplace hearth. If you have an ash drawer, clean it as well.
3. Once the fireplace hearth is clean, we must look inside the chimney with a flashlight to supervise the interior of the pipe.
   
4. We place two plastics covering the front of the chimney. We must leave a small opening in the center.
5. Put on goggles, gloves and a mask.
   
6. Through the opening, we introduce the hedgehog brush and we will clean each part little by little.
7. When you begin to feel less resistance, it means that we have removed most of the residues from the tube.
8. Take out the brush and remove the two plastic parts.
9. With a soot vacuum cleaner, collect the debris.

At Panadero, we always recommend that you hire a professional to carry it out. It is a chimney sweeping that must be done correctly and it is the one that will make your chimney work perfectly for many years.

Chemical chimney sweeping

This technique should be done once a week. It is in charge of maintaining the chimney during the season of use. In this type of cleaning is used the burning of certain products that will do the cleaning for you.

The amount of chemical chimney sweep you need varies depending on how you use the chimney. If you use the chimney sporadically, use one bag a week and one log a year at the end of winter. On the other hand, if you use your fireplace frequently, use three bags a week and one log 3 to 5 times a year.

Steps for chimney sweeping. Chemical method:

1. We light the fireplace and let the fire burn for half an hour so that the chimney pipe is hot.
   
2. We add to the fire a chimney sweeping log or a bag without taking them out of the wrapping.
3. Let the log or bag burn.
4. Let the ashes cool, then remove them with a brush or empty the ash drawer and clean it.

I haven’t cleaned my chimney for years, what should I do?

If you haven’t cleaned your chimney since you bought it or for more than a year, it is essential that you call a professional chimney sweep.

A chimney without deep cleaning for so long has risks of fire, intoxications due to poor combustion and malfunction, as well as the deterioration of its installation.

Visit our online fireplace shop here

Articles of interest:

• Tips for installing your PANADERO wood-burning stove
• Operation and cleaning of a woodstove
• How to remove the smell of soot from the house?
• How to clean the chimney glass?

Did you like this article? If so, help us spread the word 😊 . Click on the buttons below and… feel free to share it on your social networks!

Thank you!

↓      ↓      ↓      ↓