Chimney sweep and cleaning in Troy

Wood, gas and both

In the colonials and ranches Troy built in the 1960s and 1970s, the fireplace is usually masonry with a clay-lined flue. People who burn a lot of wood in those rooms often add an insert like the one in the photo, which puts more of the heat into the room. The insert vents through a liner run up the old flue, and that liner is what we brush.

Many Troy houses from the 1990s have a gas fireplace, and some have gas in the family room and a wood-burning fireplace somewhere else. We sweep the wood flues. A gas flue doesn't collect creosote, so on that one we look for nests, debris and soot from a burner that isn't running clean.

What builds up, and what gets in

Every wood fire leaves soot and creosote on the flue walls. A few fires a winter leave a thin coat. Fires every evening, or wood that wasn't dry, leave a lot more, sometimes in a hard glaze that takes more work to get off.

From the top, the problem is usually whatever falls or climbs in. The subdivisions off Rochester Road and Long Lake Road that went in fifty or sixty years ago now have trees taller than the houses, and leaves, twigs and squirrel nests end up in uncapped flues. Chimney swifts also nest in open chimneys from about May to August. They're a federally protected bird, so a flue with an active nest waits until they leave. Our guide to chimney swifts explains what to do if you hear them.

When to book

Most people in Troy call the week the first cold weekend shows up in the forecast, and so does everybody else. Booking in September or early October gets you a sweep before you want the first fire. Our guide on how often to clean a chimney covers how use and fuel change the timing.

The $349 covers the sweep and an inspection on the same visit. A camera through the flue is $75 more. If we find a cracked crown or a rusted cap while we're up there, you'll get photos and a price for chimney repair in Troy, and nothing gets done until you say so.