How often should a chimney be cleaned?

"Have your chimney professionally checked once a year and cleaned when necessary "
    - Saanich Fire Department

We recommend any wood burning flue that is in use to be cleaned every year. Fire departments strongly recommend annual inspection and cleaning. For oil chimneys, furnace or boiler, we recommend every year or two. Gas furnaces and boilers we recommend every 5 years for their flue since it burns so clean.

How do we clean the flues?

We try to sweep the chimney from the roof but in certain circumstances we may decide to do a "push-up" from the bottom. It has the same effect but takes a little longer. We use wire, bladed and poly brushes to clean the different types of chimneys.

With fireplaces we clean up inside the smoke chamber and smoke shelf (where most of the time the damper rests) and of course the fire box, removing soot and ash.

With wood stoves or inserts we clean the inside of the unit, the baffle system, any smoke pipes that lead to the chimney as well as removing ash from the firebox and clean-out. We wash any glass doors and lube the hinges.

With oil or gas flues we clean the smoke pipe that leads from the furnace to the chimney, the heat exchanger inside the furnace and the clean-out. We also let you know what shape the chimney is in whether brick or metal, and suggest any improvements.

Dirty Oil Furnace