PSA: Stop scrubbing creosote with the grain of your brush

I spent three years thinking I was clearing flues properly, just going up and down like normal. Then last winter a client in Portland called me back saying her smoke was backing up worse than before I came. I went up to check and realized I had been pushing the creosote deeper into the brick pores instead of lifting it out. A older sweep I met at a job site told me to twist the rod a quarter turn on each stroke to break the tars loose sideways. Now I get way less buildup between cleanings. Anyone else figure this out way later than they should have?

3 comments

3 Comments

terrywilson5d ago

So how long before you noticed your new method was working?

sarahpatel1d agoMost Upvoted

Oh @paige_ellis59 it was more like a week for me, not four days.

paige_ellis594d ago

Oh absolutely, I was right there with you @terrywilson - I think I noticed it around day four or five? The first couple days I was second-guessing myself like "is this actually doing anything?" but then by the end of that first week my energy levels were noticeably better (I wasn't crashing in the afternoons as hard). It was subtle at first but once I hit the two-week mark I was totally sold on it.