The days of hand-sweeping with a wire brush are long gone

I started sweeping chimneys back in the late 90s with my uncle. Back then, we used nothing but a stiff wire brush and a lot of elbow grease. You'd spend an hour on a single flue, scraping out cresote by hand, and your arms would be sore for two days. Now I've got a rotary system with flexible rods and a drill attachment. I did a job last week on a three-story colonial in Philadelphia and had it cleaned in under 30 minutes. The difference is night and day. But I still miss the rhythm of the old way sometimes. Any of you old-timers still do it by hand for certain jobs?

2 comments

2 Comments

elliot_patel1mo ago

Used to swear by hand brushing but that rotary setup changed my mind fast.

thompson.reese1mo ago

Did you switch for the speed or the consistency? I feel like once you get past the learning curve, it just feels cleaner somehow.