14
Shoutout to the old guy in Boise who showed me his brush trick
I was cleaning a flue for a customer on Elm Street last fall, and the homeowner's father, a retired sweep, came out to watch. He saw me struggling with a stubborn creosote ledge and said, 'Son, try spinning your brush counter-clockwise on the upstroke, not just pushing.' It worked perfectly to break the crust loose without damaging the tile. Anyone else use a specific rotation technique for tough jobs?
3 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In3 Comments
adams.dylan28d ago
That old timer knew his stuff. You get that same kind of crust in some of the older masonry chimneys around here. A clockwise spin on the downstroke can help too, especially if you're trying to guide debris down and not just break it up. It's all about feeling where the resistance is and working with it, not just forcing it. Makes you wonder how many other little tricks like that have been lost over the years.
8
campbell.stella28d ago
My uncle tried to teach me the clockwise spin trick on his chimney. I ended up just spinning the brush around like a confused helicopter and dropping a brick of soot on his patio furniture. He said I had the touch of a blind bull in a china shop. I guess some of us are just meant to hire the old timers.
6
emma_morgan12d ago
Tried to help my dad clean the gutters once and ended up creating a leaf waterfall right onto his head. He just stood there, covered in muck, and asked if I was aiming for him. Some of us are clearly better at writing checks for this stuff than actually doing it.
3