Too much cresole in chimney.

eamon11

its tarish an the brushes dont do much. Iv heard of a chemical which you burn in the fire and it dries out this enableling cleaning.

Any ideas?

Thanks a lot

Eamon

demanufactured

Creosote
Do you have a stove or a range by any chance???
Burning timber or turf??
Shutting down the air supply???
You wont get rid of it .

CJhaughey

Copper sulphate is the main ingredient in the little packs of blue powder that Zip and others sell as chimney cleaner.

eamon11

thanks CJ.

there must be something more though? Or what can I do? Yes its an old stanley range in my parents house. They have been burning turf for years.

slimjimmc

Google "liquid creosote remover", that's probably the stuff you heard about.
It apparently converts glazed (hard) creosote into a harmless ash which can be swept away with a chimney brush. Spray it directly on a hot fire or onto fuel going into a hot fire. You need to use it regularly to gradually reduce the build up.
I've never used it so can't comment on how effective it is.

Failing that get the pros in. Creosote build up can cause a chimney fire which can spread to the house if it gets hot enough.

eamon11

thanks slim,

do u know where I can find this?

earpiece

Suggested read to maybe help reduce build up in the future, lots more info out there for digestion:

http://www.mastersweep.com/CREO.HTM

eamon11

thanks earpiece

i wil read it and follow the guidelines therin

Carlow52

there is a chimney flail or reamer available, it is essentially a piece of chain fitted to the to of a rod and it is spun using a cordless drill.

The rods are not the normal one: they are nylon and very flexible

I have one for a 6" flue and it seems to batter the hard stuff off but without cctv difficult to know if you are consistent.

There are 4 pieces of light stainless steel chain....

needless to say u need good access to the flue

reilig

As CJHaughey said, Copper Sulphate is the king for removing solid creosote.
You can buy Copper Sulphate (aka Bluestone) in most hardwares in a 1kg tub for less than €10. Put 2 or 3 tablespoons onto the flame in the fire the night before you are going to clean the chimney. It reacts with the creosote and caused it to expand and become fluffy and loose - leaving it easy to brush off with the chimney brushes.

Hope that helps.

Seamus1964

Would there be any benefits to add bluestone to fire on regular bases

reilig

Seamus1964 wrote: »

Would there be any benefits to add bluestone to fire on regular bases

It depends on your set up - but as a general rule no.

Based on my own experience, I tested out putting in a teaspoon of bluestone into the fire for a few weeks and found that all the soot fell down into the range and blocked it. Basically with the first fire after adding the bluestone, the soot went fluffy. With subsequent fires the heat loosened it more and it fell down. That's fine for an open fire or a stove which will burn the soot as it falls into it. For a range, the soot cannot fall into the flame and it just clogs the range - this can be dangerous.