Whether you operate a wood stove, fireplace, or other wood-burning appliance in your home or business, you’re probably aware that you at least need annual chimney sweeping services for your Indianapolis home to keep it operating properly and safely. This process keeps your draft moving and prevents issues such as chimney fires and carbon monoxide poisoning, both of which may be fatal.
But there are a few specific circumstances in which you may need to have your chimney swept a second time this year. This is because these circumstances can lead to excessive creosote buildup in your chimney’s interior, making it more susceptible to chimney fires if not taken care of properly. Here’s a quick look at the most common reasons this can happen, and why you may need a second round of chimney sweeping services for your Indianapolis home.
Does Your Chimney Need a Second Cleaning This Year?
Overall, it will be up to you to decide whether your chimney will require a second cleaning. However, there are a number of situations where it is more likely that creosote will build up in your chimney, making a second cleaning necessary to keep it running efficiently and safely.
Creosote builds up in a few specific instances. Rapid temperature changes allow it to build up in excess on the inside of your chimney, and cool-burning fires can also cause it to deposit in larger amounts on your chimney’s interior. Here are the specific issues to watch out for.
You Burn Softwood.
Pine, fir, spruce, and other softwoods can provide a pleasant fire, burning hot and lighting quickly due to the resin in the wood. However, your chimney has a different opinion on the matter. Softwood resins can leave excessive deposits on the chimney’s interior.
At the same time, the rapid change from burning hot to not burning can also leave excess creosote, as the chimney does not have the opportunity to heat up slowly to prevent this issue. If you want a hot fire in your fireplace or woodstove during extreme weather or chilly evening, look for well-seasoned high-density hardwood firewood instead.
You Burn Green Wood.
Green wood, or wood that has not been allowed to dry out prior to use, tends to have a lot of excess water to cook off before it begins to burn. This requires a lot of energy and produces a cool fire that can deposit a lot of creosote on your chimney’s interior due to how cool the smoke is. But why does this happen?
Everyone knows that heat rises, but smoke that isn’t as hot doesn’t rise as quickly. Because the smoke from green wood is cooler, it takes longer to travel through your chimney and has more time to deposit creosote in your chimney’s interior. You want to burn well-seasoned firewood that has dried for at least six months to a year before being used. If you notice that your firewood has moisture boiling out of the end grain as it burns, it’s too green to burn efficiently in your fireplace.
Someone Else Uses Your Fireplace.
Friends, family, rental guests: if somebody else uses your fireplace, they may not be aware of how to start a fire in a way that minimizes creosote buildup in your chimney. They may also burn items such as paper, cardboard, or other items that may not burn cleanly, which can cause problems down the road.
Items that don’t burn cleanly, such as paper or cardboard, also tend to burn cool the way that green wood does, or may combust quickly before a proper draft is started through a slower rise in temperature. This can lead to more creosote being deposited due to the compounds in the materials being burned or the slow travel of the smoke up the chimney.
What to Burn to Avoid Excess Creosote and a Second Cleaning
Now that we’ve covered what NOT to burn, what should you be burning in your fireplace to ensure proper operation and lower amounts of creosote? Here are a few tips to get you started on the right track:
- Start your fires using dry kindling, slowly adding larger pieces until it’s burning properly. Make sure that any firestarters you use are rated for your fireplace, woodstove, or other woodburning appliance.
- Only burn hardwood. To get a nice, hot fire, consider using oak, hickory, or similar tight-grain hardwood. These woods produce more BTUs than softer hardwoods such as walnut. Use extremely hot woods such as hedge only when mixed with other woods to avoid damage.
- Don’t burn green wood. A small, handheld moisture meter is a great way to determine if the firewood is dry enough for effective and efficient burning, and is a relatively small investment if you buy your firewood from other sources.
By understanding the factors that can impact your chimney’s ability to remain clean through the heating season, you can take steps to avoid creosote buildup or other factors that can require you to undertake a second chimney cleaning. If you need to have your chimney checked out to determine whether a second cleaning is necessary this year, or if you need chimney sweeping, cleaning or inspection services in Indianapolis, the experienced chimney experts at Clean Sweep 317 are happy to help. Give us a call today to get started!