At Clean-Rite Chimney Sweep, we follow very specific guidelines and procedures that guarantee a thorough and professional chimney cleaning job. After you receive a no-obligation quote, we’ll show up on time – every time. We put down clean floor coverings around your fireplace, ensuring your floors and belongs stay free from soot and debris, and we will always clean up all work areas. We use specialized tools and powerful vacuums that will prevent any soot or dust from your chimney from entering your home. We will clean your chimney  from the bottom, reaching the firebox, smoke chamber, damper, smoke shelf, and flue liner.

We are more than just Chimney Sweeps, we are fully trained at diagnosing potential problem areas in your venting and chimney system. If we see something that needs attention, or is not quite right, we will let you know and perform a more detailed inspection if necessary. We will never do any repairs or work without the your permission, but your safety is our top priority, so we feel it is our duty to report any deficiencies in your chimney and venting system. We recommend that customers have a full annual level one inspection along with their cleaning just to stay on top of any maintenance or safety issues that may present themselves.

Creosote is  considered a carbonaceous chemical formed by heating tars and resins of material such as wood. When you burn wood in your wood stove or fireplace, the fire heats up the tars and resins in the wood and are off-gassed as volatiles in the smoke. When the smoke rises through the chimney, it cools off, causing carbon, water and volatiles to condense on the inside surfaces of your chimney flue. A black oily residue builds up, and this is what is referred to as creosote. If your fireplace or wood stove is used regularly to heat your home, a creosote buildup of several inches thick is possible over just one burning season. Creosote is highly flammable, so a thick accumulation of creosote creates high risk of a chimney fire, which can then spread to a house fire. Removing creosote build up is critical to maintaining chimney health and preventing fires.

At Clean-Rite, we recommend that masonry chimneys should be cleaned when 1/4 of an inch of sooty build-up and creosote is present. Factory built insert fireplaces have been known to become a hazard with a much thinner build-up on the inside walls.  Either type can reach a dangerous level after burning as little as a cord of wood, so your cleaning schedule may end up being 1 or 2 times per year. Even if you don’t use your chimney much, there is always the chance that animals have built nests during the summer months  that can form a blockage. In the fall, blockages can be caused by falling leaves.

Natural gas, although cleaner than wood, actually create more water vapor than wood burning fires. This means more condensation in the chloride containing fumes, which can then create a hydrochloric acid coating on the furnace flues. This is a highly corrosive agent and these natural gas sytems should be checked at least once a year.

The answer to this question can vary, depending on the fuel you use, the age of your home, the condition of your chimney, and the weather conditions (mild winters cause more problems than cold ones!). If you use wood, it’s generally good to have the chimney cleaned at least every 1-2 times a year, however, if you burn two or more cords of wood, or if you are burning green wood, you will need more frequent cleanings.

Oil flues need to be inspected and cleaned annually to avoid chimney blockage, especially if there’s a problem with airflow. Problems in a furnace or boiler can cause extremely sooty conditions in the chimney.

Although natural gas is a clean-burning fuel, high-efficiency gas furnaces can create special problems. The fumes they produce are cooler and produce higher levels of water vapor than older models, and this vapor in turn produces more water condensation. These vapors contain chlorides from home-supplied combustion air, which combine forming hydrochloric acid. The acid-water condensations from these latest natural gas furnaces cause more flue deterioration than older models, so it’s important to check the chimneys that vent these systems at least once each year.

It can take 45 minutes to an hour for a thorough chimney cleaning, on average. If your chimney hasn’t been cleaned regularly, anticipate it taking longer, especially if there is a substantial amount of creosote present. If we find other issues at the time of servicing your chimney, we can take the time to address them the same day (time permitting) or schedule to come back for a follow up visit.

Like with all service professionals, not all chimney sweeps are the same.

As your chimney is key to a safe home, you definitely should do a bit of research before choosing the right chimney sweep for you. Getting a referral from friends, checking references and checking reviews on trusted websites are all great places to start. 

From there, once your chosen chimney sweep is scheduled, check for punctuality, professionalism, knowledge and cleanliness of the job site to determine if you’ll be using your chimney sweep again.

Like with all service professionals, when you find one that checks all the boxes, make sure to schedule your next maintenance visit, and tell your friends!

Clean-Rite Chimney Sweep has built a solid reputation for being the best at what they do. We encourage you to check our reviews and contact us with any questions!

A chimney sweep that cares about the safety of your family and your home will recommend and encourage you to schedule your next chimney cleaning at the time they are at your home. Scheduling regular chimney inspections and chimney cleanings can help you avoid chimney fires, prevent carbon monoxide leaks and head off any chimney damage in advance of problems becoming a health or safety issues.

Carbon monoxide poisoning is a life-threatening emergency that everyone should take seriously.

When carbon monoxide fumes are present in your home, and is inhaled, it replaces the oxygen in your red blood cells, building up in your bloodstream and leading to serious tissue damage, and possibly death. The heart, brain and other organs can be negatively impacted, especially in the elderly, infants and children and pregnant women.

Because carbon monoxide is tasteless, odorless and colorless, it is not easily detectable without the help of a carbon monoxide detector. 

To ensure your home’s air is safe, install carbon monoxide detectors in your home today and make sure that your fireplace, wood burning stove and their chimneys receive regular cleanings and inspections.

Signs that you may have carbon monoxide poisoning include:

• dull headache
• dizziness
• weakness
• vomiting and/or nausea
• difficulty breathing
• confusion
• changes in vision/blurry vision
• loss of consciousness

If you suspect carbon monoxide poisoning, get to fresh air immediately and seek emergency care. Open windows and doors to increase airflow in your home, possibly using a fan to speed up circulation.

Don’t you love scheduling a service call and your service provider gives you am 8 hour ‘window’ where they may show up?

We’ve all been there!

At Clean-Rite Chimney Sweep, we know that your time is valuable. We will schedule a set service time,  call you to remind you of your scheduled chimney service and we will be punctual, arriving at your home at the scheduled time. We work efficiently, but thoroughly, through the service process so you can get on to the rest of your day.

If any issues come up at your service call that need to be addresses, we can take care of them the same day (schedules permitting), or schedule the work for another day.

We have been providing white glove excellence in our chimney cleaning and inspection services since 1983.

39 years of experience means we have seen nearly everything; the good, the bad and the ugly. It also means that we are well qualified to address whatever chimney issues we come across, and can thoroughly answer any questions you may have.

We love to share our knowledge, because we know the more knowledgeable a homeowner is, the safer the home is!

Give us a call for your No Mess Cleaning Service. We protect your home using our state of the art Soot Collection System.

A chimney liner protects against the transfer of heat to the components of your home that are combustible surrounding the chimney. Even a small crack in your chimney liner can cause a house fire.

Chimney liners also protect the mortar joints, as the gases created by burning fires are acidic and will deteriorate the mortar. This has a domino effect, and can result in dangerous gases getting into your home or a fire to combust.

For decades now, all homes with chimneys are required to have a liner. If you live in or are thinking of purchasing a very old home, make sure that you have a trusted chimney sweep, like Clean-Rite, do an inspection and thorough cleaning, to ensure that your home’s chimney liner is installed and in good repair.

An inspection will indicate whether your chimney liner is in good repair and help with your peace of mind. 

Blockages and debris in your chimney, such as birds nests, critters, pine needles and leaves can cause serious safety issues when you use your fireplace or wood burning stove.

A chimney cap can keep your clear of unwanted debris by protecting the opening of your chimney. Mad of copper mesh or steel, chimney caps come is a variety of styles so they can blend with your homes exterior.

Stainless steel caps, with a stainless steel spark guard, although more expensive, will last forever.

A properly fitting chimney cap will save you future damage, making it well worth the investment.

Unlike a masonry fireplace that is well maintained,  prefab fireplaces have limited service life and will need to be replaced after time. 

You can expect to have to replace your prefab fireplace insert every 20 years, perhaps sooner if you burn hot fires frequently and/or regular maintenance has not occurred. 

An experienced chimney sweep, like Clean-Rite, will be able to determine if your prefab fireplace insert is in good repair, or if it needs to be replaced. If it needs to be replaced, we will remove the old unit with care, and install a new one, ensuring your venting specification meet your fireplace usage.

Most commonly, fireplace leaks occur from wear and tear on the chimney. Leaks in the chimney cap, mortar or flashing can all be the cause of a water leak. 

Although some leaks, and their causes, can be minor and easy to fix, some problems may require a professional with experience at fixing chimney leaks. 

When you call Clean-Rite Chimney Sweep about a chimney leak, we’ll come to your home and determine what is causing the leak and what needs to happen to mitigate the problem. Because every leak is not the same, we’ll make sure you know what can be done to try to prevent future leaks and help you get on a regular maintenance schedule, so we can catch any potential problems, before they cause damage to your home. 

Creosote, left inside your chimney in warm, wet, windy weather can cause your fireplace to smell in the summer.

Keeping your fireplace cleared of ash can help, as can spraying the inside of your fireplace with a 1:1 blend of vinegar and water, which is excellent for removing smoky smells. Other things that will help are closing the flue, making sure you have a tight seal on your damper and making sure you have a chimney cap on.

Clean-Rite Chimney Sweep can come out in the spring and make sure your chimney is cleaned and in good repair, preventing unpleasant odors from occurring. Call us today!

Maybe your trying to create special ambiance, or more importantly, trying to heat your home after being away all day. Either can go off the rails quickly, when your home starts filling up with smoke, causing the smoke detector to blare and children and pets to get anxious. You find your self opening all the windows and fanning the door just to clear the air, which also, ironically, makes the air in your home colder. If it sounds like we have first hand experience with this, it’s because we do. We’ve all been there.

Things to check to ensure you don’t have a smoke-filled home:

• Your damper is open. A closed damper will prevent smoke from going up and out your chimney.
• Create an updraft before you light a fire by using a small piece of burning kindling to help get airflow moving up the chimney.
• Crack a window near your fireplace if your home is sealed too tightly as this prevents competing air pressure.

When you find a white powdery deposit on the bricks of your chimney, it is an indicator of moisture that is moving through the brick surface and may be a sign that you need a new flue liner.

The white powder is a mineral deposit called efflorescence. Moisture picks up minerals and carries them to the surface of your masonry. When the water evaporates, it leaves behind little white crystals. While a small amount of minerals themselves don’t do any harm, if the efflorescence on your masonry gets to be excessive, it is something to pay attention to.

If moisture in warm air from inside your home is condensing on the interior of your chimney during cold weather it could be an indicator that your flue liner is cracked. This will cause rapid deterioration in the brick and mortar of your chimney, leading to costly repairs.

If you have questions about efflorescence on your home and want to make sure that it’s not an issue that needs to be addresses, give Clean-Rite Chimney Sweep a call. We’re here to help!

A. “You’re too young to smoke!”…. I know. We just had to do it!!!