Chemical Cleaning Products for Chimneys

The Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA) is a non-profit, educational institution focused on the prevention of chimney and venting hazards, is concerned about the consumer use of chemical chimney cleaning products to the exclusion of conventional chimney inspections and cleaning. These products often are promoted for their ability to remove a portion of creosote from a masonry or metal chimney interior through catalytic action when burned in a fireplace or wood stove.

The CSIA believes that the use of these products alone is not an adequate substitute for mechanical chimney cleaning and inspection because it does not provide the same level of protection to the chimney system. Current promotional claims for some of the products may be creating a false sense of security among consumers.

It is the consensus of qualified experts that chimney maintenance is best achieved through annual inspections, and mechanical sweeping, by trained professional chimney sweeps as frequently needed.

Chimney inspections often reveal hidden problems with a chimney structure that could be potentially hazardous. Mechanical sweeping of chimneys not only removes layers of creosote from the chimney surface, it removes the resulting loose soot and creosote from the chimney, fireplace, or wood stove.

A substantial percentage of the fireplace and wood stove chimneys do not provide a straight path from the firebox to the outside. If chemical chimney cleaning products perform as claimed and cause debris in the chimney to fall, that debris still needs to be removed from the smoke shelf, baffle, catalytic combustion, or offset in order to ensure a properly functioning chimney.

Chemical products that claim to clean or assist in cleaning chimneys are not new. Indeed some of these chemical products are used successfully by professional chimney sweeps in conjunction with the mechanical cleaning of a chimney. In some situations a chimney can develop a hard or tacky layer of creosote in the chimney that cannot be removed by a normal mechanical brushing. Under the supervision of a qualified chimney professional certain chemical cleaners may be used to change the chemical composition of the hard and tacky layer of creosote into a brittle or powdery condition to facilitate it's removal.

CSIA believes that the optimal method for cleaning a chimney is by a mechanical brushing of the chimney in conjunction with a complete evaluation of the system by a qualified chimney professional. The CSIA and the National Fire Protection Association recommend annual inspections.

For more information about chimney safety: www.csia.org

Chimney Sweeping Logs

Although Wood Energy Technology Transfer (WETT) does not have a formal position on these products, they do have a few comments. First, WETT is not in the business of recommending or not recommending specific products. They do, however, have to be prepared for consumer and member inquiries. Their response has been to deal with the facts. As wood heat professionals they know the value of having a chimney professionally swept and inspected.

They do not dispute that these logs perform as they claim, what does concern them is that the product does not perform an inspection. Part of the value of a professional chimney sweep is that an inspection is being performed at the same time. It is through this process that a consumer can be confident that the installation is safe.

By not having their chimneys routinely swept by WETT trained professionals, homeowners may have problems with their insurance coverage. Insurers do ask consumers about chimney sweeping frequency.

Please visit the WETT web site: www.wettinc.ca