When you hear the word chimney sweep you might picture Dick Van Dyke dancing on a rooftop in Edwardian London, but that’s not an entirely accurate picture of what a chimney sweep does. A chimney sweep is still an important job in the twenty-first century as they help keep the indoor air quality of our homes healthy and clean. If you’ve ever wondered, “What does a chimney sweep do?” you’ve come to the right place.
What Is A Chimney Sweep?
In order to properly answer the question, “What does a chimney sweep do?” you need to start by understanding what a chimney sweep is. A chimney sweep is someone who is trained and certified to clean out a home chimney system so that your fireplace can be used as needed. Now that you have a basic understanding of what a chimney sweep is, you are ready to learn the answer to “What does a chimney sweep do?”
What Does A Chimney Sweep Do?
A chimney sweep does a lot of tasks to maintain a home chimney system. According to the CSIA (Chimney Safety Institute of America), a chimney sweep cleans out soot, creosote, and various dirt and debris that might be blocking the chimney. The parts of the chimney that are cleaned consist of the flue, chimney cap, damper, smoke chamber, and the fireplace itself. Let’s get specific about what a chimney sweep does by taking a look at how a chimney sweep cleans a chimney system.
Tools
The first thing you need to know is what kind of tools a chimney sweep uses. You can’t really know the answer to the question, “What does a chimney sweep do?” if you don’t know what they use for their job. The flue-liner brush will be one of the most important tools for chimney sweeping. The type of flue-liner brush used will ultimately depend on the type of chimney flue. This brush is used to remove blockages in the flue and get rid of soot.
In addition to the flue-liner brush, a specific brush for the fireplace will be needed. A smoke chamber brush will also be used for cleaning the chimney. Aside from the brushes, a chimney sweep will also need a shop vacuum to help clean the chimney and fireplace. Finally, a chimney sweep will also need a cloth, flashlight, mask, safety glasses, and a harness if they’re going to clean from the roof.
Inspection
Aside from cleaning and maintaining the chimney system, the next part of answering “What does a chimney sweep do?” is to inspect the chimney. Chimney sweeps will perform inspections before cleaning the chimney and afterward. This allows the chimney sweep to see if any issues in your chimney system need to be addressed. These inspections are divided into Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3 inspections.
A Level 1 chimney inspection is a bare minimum inspection for an unchanged chimney. This one is most likely to take place during a routine chimney sweeping. A Level 2 inspection, on the other hand, is required when a change is made to a chimney system, whether it’s the fuel being used or the flue itself. Finally, Level 3 inspections are only performed when there appears to be a major underlying issue that the previous two inspections were unable to uncover sufficiently. The different types of inspections performed by chimney sweeps will really help ensure that your chimney system is working properly and safely.
Our Chimney Sweeps Are The Best In Texas!
The next time someone asks, “What does a chimney sweep do?” you can easily answer with: “A chimney sweep cleans, maintains, and inspects home chimney systems.” Your knowledge of what a chimney sweep does will allow you to know what exactly you can expect the next time you need service for your chimney. If you’re looking for someone to complete that service soon, contact us at Air Duct Cleaning Experts today.