Chimney blockages are caused by various things. This can be very dangerous to your property and your family’s health. Make sure your chimney is always clean.
If you have a chimney, chances are you have had something stuck inside it at some point. A chimney blockage can be a dangerous situation; as stated by the Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA), a dirty chimney can cause a chimney fire. One of the main reasons an annual chimney sweep is so important, proper maintenance of your chimney prevents your chimney from blockages as everything is cleaned out and removed in the chimney sweep process. We at Ashbusters provide the best chimney sweep in town, and our CSIA-certified technicians will remove the following common chimney blockages when they are stuck in your chimney.
Animals
When the cold weather comes, animals like birds, squirrels, and raccoons come looking for a warm place to nest for the winter, and your chimney may become a chosen home. This can create a very perilous situation as not only could it cause a dangerous fire if you light a fire while the animal is inside your chimney, but if the animal becomes stuck, it could die, leaving it to spread foul, putrid fumes through your house. You should never try to remove a wild animal from a chimney yourself. Always call professionals like Ashbusters. We are qualified with removing animal debris, and if need be, we can contact a professional animal remover if an animal is still alive.
Debris
Even though you may have a chimney cap, leaves, trash, and settlement still seem to get into your chimney and accumulate. After a period of time, this accumulation can cause a blockage large enough to cause incomplete combustion and negative air pressure, driving smoke back into your house. Also, if you allow settlement to build up long enough, it causes cracks in your flue, and then you will have dangerous, poisonous carbon monoxide leaking into your house.
Creosote
If you have a wood-burning stove, you have creosote deposits building up on the walls of your chimney, and if you go too long without a chimney sweeping, creosote can build up large enough to be a hazardous blockage. According to the CSIA, creosote is formed naturally in the wood-burning process. When the by-products of combustion (smoke, vapors, tar fog, gases, hyrdocarbon, unburned wood particles, etc) exit your fireplace and go out your cooler chimney, condensation occurs, and the result is creosote residue. Black or brown in appearance, creosote can be sticky and tar-like, shiny and hardened, or crusty and flaky, but no matter what it looks like, it is a dangerous, highly-combustible compound that is the leading cause of chimney fires. Luckily, your annual chimney sweep will take care of all of the creosote build-up in your chimney. The CSIA-certified chimney sweeps at Ashbusters are highly trained to remove all creosote deposits from your chimney, making it safe from chimney fires.
Although, the “something is stuck in my chimney!” situation sounds dire and can be an emergency, there is a simple solution: contact Ashbusters today for a professional chimney sweep to get the blockage out of your chimney and safely enjoy your fireplace again.