Mr Sweep - Chimney Sweep Lymington

Mr Sweep

Chimney Sweep Services

Call 07971 280906

Chimney Sweep Services

Mr Sweep provides a professional, friendly, reliable and clean chimney sweep service in Lymington, The New Forest and Surrounding Areas. Please see below for more details on my chimney sweep services. 

The Cleaning

The cleaning starts with seeing what type of fire, stove, wood burner or any other appliance you may have. If it has a chimney, and I can gain access to it; I can clean it! I’ll select the right brush, big enough to get into the corners if its a square chimney or the same size as the flue if its round. It may be I’ll use traditional method or a viper, or power sweeping.

The aim is to get the chimney cleaned safely and with no mess. Once cleaned I carry out smoke test to make sure the fire/appliance is drawing properly. If it’s a stove wood burner or has any type of door enclosing the fire I check the door seals properly that there is no smoke leaks.

Finally I fill out a certificate saying all is well or pointing out any defects you may have and how we can work to resolve them.

Carbon Monoxide

Also known as the silent killer. A big misconception is that only gas fires produce Carbon Monoxide. WRONG !

Any fuel that burns creates Carbon Monoxide. Too much Carbon Monoxide in the blood will kill. Less well known is that is the fact that low levels of the gas endanger health. Such as brain damage and organ damage. When fuel is burnt in the fire, wood burner etc the fumes including Carbon Monoxide are taken safely away by the chimney. So it follows that if the chimney is maintained properly then there is no danger. Problems may happen if something blocks the chimney or the fire can’t draw properly. Have the chimney cleaned at least once a year for wood or twice a year for coal or to the manufacturers recommendations.

Having an alarm will protect you. The average cost of one is £15.00, not a lot considering what it can save you from. Most of the big supermarkets, DIYs stores, they all sell them.

Storing Your Fuel

Storing your fuel in a dry place, whether it’s logs or coal, is of the upmost importance! Don’t cover wood up with plastic sheeting this will make it sweat and get wetter. If possible get yourself a log store. Its like a mini shed but it allows the air to pass through and dry the wood.

A good tip is to buy your logs in the Spring &  early Summer time, for burning in the coming Winter.

Mr Sweep - Chimney Sweep Lymington
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Creosote

Creosote build up is caused by unburned fuel. Burning wet wood or allowing the fire to slumber (keeping it in) over night. Creosote comes in different forms, all bad. It’s foul smelling and eats away liners and stove parts and brickwork. Even more serious is the risk of chimney fire. Above is a picture of Type 2 creosote, its normally flakey or cake-like and is prone to catch fire. This can usually be removed by sweeping.

In contrast glazed creosote (picture below) is very difficult to remove and normally has to be treated with chemicals. If you have the early signs of creosote call me! It can usually be treated more easily if caught early on

Mr Sweep - Chimney Sweep Lymington
Mr Sweep - Chimney Sweep Lymington

Creosote Build Up

The diagram above shows exactly how your woodburner should be working – you can see the airflow around the box & up in to the flue. Ensuring you have an efficient fire box & hot flue is essential in keeping the flue clean.

Woodburner Air Flow

You can also follow these 2 easy steps to further minimise reducing the build up of creosote:

Don’t burn wet wood – if you can hear the logs sizzling then the wood is wet. If your wood has sitting in the rain, unprotected, then don’t bother using it! Clearly, water can’t burn so the logs will smoulder, making lots of smoke and not a lot of heat. As this smoke goes up the chimney it cools and creates your creosote. This will coat everything it comes into contact with and increasing the risk of a chimney fire.

unless your wood burner is designed to burn slowly over night don’t let it! What I mean is don’t load the stove up with fuel and shut the air vents; this will make lots of creosote.

Mr Sweep - Chimney Sweep Lymington

Curing Creosote

Most of the time creosote can be removed by brushing. However, the glazed type is very difficult to remove and normally has to be treated with chemicals. I use “Cre-Away Pro”, a powder based creosote modifier. First I heat the chimney, then shoot the powder up the chimney using compressed air this make sure the whole chimney gets coated.

Removing Glazed Creosote

You then use the fire as normal & the heat from the fire activates the powder – breaking the glazed creosote down into a powder form. The powder also contains an inhibitor which prevents chimney fires.

A week to ten days later I’ll return & sweep the chimney again, with a further dose of Cre-Away put up the chimney the treatment is then complete. As long as you have your chimney/liner cleaned regularly and follow the advice to prevent creosote build up it will be ok!

Do's & Dont's

Do

Don't

Call Mr Sweep today to book a Chimney Sweep - 07971 280906