Regular inspections can sweep fireplace problems away
While you won’t find the modern chimney sweep wearing a top hat and tails, they still subscribe to regular chimney checkups.
Jake Cromwell, owner of Top Hat Chimney and Roofing of Springdale, which services northwest Arkansas, said the National Fireplace Association recommends an annual inspection to ensure the safety of homes with wood-burning fireplaces.
“Having a periodic inspection, especially annually, can give the homeowner information to feel confident before setting a 1,000-degree fire inside the home,” Cromwell said.
The latest data shows 15,000 homes are lost or severely damaged annually from undetected flue fire, he said.
Cromwell started with Top Hat in 1998 as an apprentice. There have been three generations of owners since the business opened in 1983. He purchased the business in 2010.
“The lineage of apprenticeship is essential,” he said. “It (chimney sweeping) is not something you can pick up on your own.”
There was a movement afoot in the early 1970s, sparked by Mother Earth News, that featured alternative living, such as living off the land, to develop industry standards for fireplace inspections.
At the time, fireplace flue cleanings were done by roofing, heating and air conditioning and stone masons, Cromwell said. Nothing was specialized.
Standards began to develop several decades later through the National Chimney Sweepers Guild, the Chimney Safety Institute of America as well as the National Fireplace Association and the Hearth, Patio and Barbecue Association. The NFI and CSIA offer training and certification programs for technicians.
Pea Ridge Fire Chief Jamie Baggett said: “Every year before winter, home owners need to check their chimneys and be sure
there isn’t a creosote buildup in there.”
One of the problems with fireplaces is creosote, a natural byproduct of burning wood, he said. Unburned particles of wood escape as gases and condense on the side of the flue. It’s similar to a smoker used for cooking meat.
“It is combustible, and that’s what causes chimney fire,” Cromwell said.
In recent years, new tools have been developed, such as power-driven sweeping brushes with soft heads and fanned exhaust systems. Disturbed creosote is immediately exhausted up and out of the chimney, he said.
Usually there is a video camera inspection of the flue to examine the lining of the chimney, Cromwell said. The video will document damage, deficiencies and other concerns that may arise.
The costs of the inspections are generally $100 with an additional charge for sweeping, but an inspection is required before sweeping.
“Chimney sweeping is an obscure trade and it’s difficult for people to understand our services, especially when a component can ignite a 1,000-degree fire in the middle of your wooden structure,” Cromwell said.
Most fires occur in the latter part of the winter, he said. Even if there is an inspection at the start of the wood-burning season, creosote can build up with usage.
Cromwell said critters in the chimney also can be a problem because they can block the chimney lining. Those critters include raccoons, squirrels, birds and even insects building nests.
“Most important, people rarely know when they have flue fires,” he said. “Seventy-five percent of flue fires occur without the homeowner’s knowledge.”
Evidence of a flue fire can be found when the creosote looks different than regular creosote. This is usually found during inspections. The creosote inside the fire box is darker. Cracked or missing mortar joints can be a sign of a flue fire as well.
Damage to the roof or chimney crown can result from overheating from a flue fire.
For more information, visit the Chimney Safety Institute of America at www.csia.org. Top Hat Chimney and Roofing can be contacted at 479-8554347.