Showerthought: my old steel brush vs the new poly one for a 1950s clay tile flue

The poly brush got the job done in half the time and didn't risk cracking the old tiles. Anyone else made the switch and noticed a difference on delicate liners?

3 comments

3 Comments

alice_foster12d ago

My last job on a 1920s house with those thin clay liners finally convinced me. I used a steel brush for years, always holding my breath. The poly brush just glides through without that awful scraping sound. It feels less like you're fighting the flue the whole time. I won't go back to metal for anything old or fragile now.

hall.nora10d ago

Oh man, you're both so right. @hannahcoleman, that plastic cable head story hits home. I had the same thing with a chimney from 1915. The steel brush felt like it was chewing up the liner, and I could hear little bits raining down. Switched to a poly brush last fall and it was a total game changer. No more dust cloud, no more that cringe-worthy metal-on-clay scream. It just feels safer, like you're actually cleaning it, not wrecking it.

hannahcoleman11d ago

Remember cleaning out a cast iron drain line from the 40s last year. The old steel snake kept catching on the rough spots inside, making this horrible grinding noise. Switched to a plastic cable head and it just fed right through, quiet as anything. Sometimes the old tools are too harsh for the old pipes.