Chimney sweeps booked for months as Scots fire up coal again
Chimney sweeps are fully booked for months while wood sales are soaring amid fears of soaring energy bills.
Householders are turning to alternative forms of heating as the price cap on energy bills rises by 70% to £3,400 from October. Peter Harris, chairman of the Association of Professional
Independent Chimney Sweeps, said: “People are opening up their chimneys and getting them swept in preparation for winter.” He said sweeps were now almost fully booked for August and September and were taking bookings two months in advance, a situation that is “pretty much unheard of”.
Households have also started stockpiling wood for winter. Nic Snell, managing director of Certainly Wood, said: “I think there’s going to be a trend towards what people used to do. People are going to have to start huddling round the fire again.”