Chimney sweep and fireplace cleaning in McDonald

Rental and vacation homes between guests

A fireplace in a rental or vacation home gets used by people who do not know it. Guests may burn wet wood, cardboard or a stack of wax logs, close the damper too early or leave ash in the firebox for the next arrival.

Sweeping between bookings keeps the flue and firebox ready for the next guest and catches problems early. Our crew works around your turnover schedule, protects the room and leaves it clean, and the written record helps owners and managers keep a maintenance file.

Simple house rules help. A short note by the fireplace covering dry wood only, no trash or cardboard in the fire, the damper fully open before lighting and ashes left for the cleaners cuts down on what the next sweep finds. We are glad to suggest wording based on what the flue shows.

Dry, split, seasoned wood stored off the ground

Wet wood burns smoky, and EPA guidance links unseasoned wood directly to creosote buildup, since the fire spends its energy driving off water and makes more smoke doing it. The guidance is plain. Burn only dry, split, well-seasoned wood, and skip anything wet, rotted or moldy.

Seasoned wood is darker, weighs less and sounds hollow when two pieces are knocked together, according to the same guidance, which calls for seasoning wood at least six months. Stack it outdoors, off the ground, with only the top covered, because covering the sides traps moisture.

From the deposits, our technicians can often tell whether the wood has been wet, and they will say so.

• Split, dry and seasoned before it burns
• Stacked outdoors and off the ground
• Covered on top only
• Checked for mold or rot before use

Building a fire that burns clean

A clean-burning fire starts small and hot. EPA guidance says to start fires with newspaper, dry kindling or all-natural fire starters, and never with gasoline, kerosene or charcoal starter. Add split wood once the kindling is burning well, instead of smothering it early.

Keep flammable items such as curtains, furniture, newspapers and books away from the fireplace, the same guidance says. Open the damper fully before lighting, and give the fire enough air to burn brightly instead of smoldering. A sturdy screen goes across the opening once it is lit.

A fire built this way sends less unburned smoke into the flue, and less smoke means less residue left behind. Our technicians see the difference in the deposits from one sweep to the next, and they will gladly walk you through a routine that suits your fireplace in McDonald.

Black streaks running down the firebox wall

Dark, shiny streaks running down the back wall of the firebox or from the damper area suggest creosote in the flue that is wet and sticky or has started to glaze. Smoke condensing in a cool flue leaves a tar-like residue, and some of it can run before it hardens.

A streaked firebox tends to go with a flue that runs cool, a damper that is not fully open or wood that is not dry. Brushing removes what is soft. What has hardened into a glaze needs a separate removal treatment.

Our technicians trace where the streaks start, look at the flue above them after sweeping and tell you which parts the brush cleared and which need glazed creosote removal. For your McDonald home, both are priced in writing before the work begins.