by Billy Sweet | Sep 18, 2016 | Chimney Masonry Maintenance
Your chimney system is made of many working parts, that together do a very important job. Without your chimney the byproducts from your fire would be released into your home, causing health risk and increased chance of 
fire. An important part of the chimney that keeps it working properly is the chimney crown, and it should not be overlooked.
What is a Chimney Crown
The chimney crown is a masonry slab that covers the top of the chimney from the flue liner to the edge of the chimney. The crown is designed to keep water from entering the flue, and guides the water instead to the roof. The chimney cap prevents water from entering the flue from the sky, and the crown prevents water from entering the flue from the edge of the chimney.
The chimney crown should be professionally installed, and is made specifically for each chimney. If the chimney crown is not the correct size or installed incorrectly then water will not only enter the flue, but can also pool around the chimney and penetrate the flashing.
Water and Your Chimney
Water damage is the single worst enemy of your masonry chimney. It can cause parts to rust, masonry to weaken and crumble, walls and ceilings to leak, and more. Avoid this costly damage by getting the job done right the first time.
Hire a Professional
A general contractor may be unfamiliar with chimneys, chimney crowns, and other vital chimney parts. To ensure that you’re getting the proper taper, overhang, and materials call Billy Sweet Chimney Sweep. A proper chimney crown should be constructed of a Portland cement-based mixture and cast or formed so it provides an overhang projecting behind all sides of the chimney by a minimum of two inches. Also, the flue liner should project above the crown a minimum of two inches.
A CSIA Certified Chimney Sweep® (CCS) can not only construct a proper chimney crown, but is also experienced in assessing damaged crowns as well as repairing them.
Signs Your Chimney Crown Needs Repairs
Cracks, crumbled masonry, or chipping and flaking—known as spalling—as well as chimney leaks and leaks around the crown itself is cause for repair. An experienced and professional chimney sweep can assess damage and offer a fair rate to repair or replace the chimney crown. If damages are not extensive, our technician can apply a simple crown coat sealant, which will seal cracks, creating a water-proof barrier.
Your trusted chimney sweep will quickly assess damage and offer a repair plan that you can feel comfortable with. Our top priority at Billy Sweet Chimney Sweep is the safety of our customers. We do not cut corners with training, experience, or work. We are licensed, ensured, and guarantee the best.
Call a Billy Sweet Chimney Sweep today, and make sure your chimney crown is ready for fall and winter!
by Billy Sweet | Aug 24, 2016 | Winter Fireplace
It is late summer, and fall weather will start bringing cool temperatures
with it soon! Now is the time to begin thinking about your home heating. There are numerous options to heat your home including central heat, wood and gas appliances, and a wood fireplace. Each of these options has benefits and drawbacks, and each home and family has specific needs and wishes to consider as well. While you are researching options and making decisions that will affect your energy bill, your comfort, and your decor, there are four things to keep in mind.
Fuel
Appliances are designed to burn a specific kind of fuel. If you decide to use a pellet stove, you should only use a manufactured pellet product designed for that appliance. If you are using a wood fireplace or stove, you should use only properly seasoned wood. If you use a gas appliance or insert, you should have an existing natural gas hook-up, or have one professionally installed.
Ventilation
Depending on what kind of heat appliance you decide to use this winter, you may be able to use the existing chimney, or even avoid using one at all. Vent-free fireplace inserts don’t require chimney ventilation. Other inserts that do require ventilation don’t necessarily have to use the chimney. Your technician can actually use an alternate route during installation. Keep in mind that you can use your stainless steel flue liner for all fuel types. However, if you have a tile or cast liner, you will need to convert to an appropriate flue liner before using your appliance.
Cost
When choosing your new heat appliance for your home, don’t only think of the cost to buy and install it. Consider the energy cost over the winter as well as the routine maintenance. Some appliances are extremely low maintenance, like vent-free gas inserts. Others should be cleaned of ashes and soot, as well as require routine chimney sweeps and inspections regularly. The energy cost is also a deciding factor. Wood should be bought or chopped. Gas is purchased from an energy company. If the price of gas is exceptionally high, and you have readily accessibly trees and a chainsaw, wood may be the best option for your home right now, but if you live in an urban area and simply want the ambiance of a fire, gas would be for you. Finally, efficiency affects overall price as well. Gas appliances tend to be more efficient than wood. Keeping up with chimney maintenance also raises efficiency of your appliances. You may spend more upon purchase and installation, and save over the life of the furnace.
Aesthetics
If your home is a rustic cabin, you probably wouldn’t want a sleek, stainless-steel-framed gas insert. Likewise, if the goal is high-tech and hands off, you might like a gas insert with a simple switch to turn it on and off. Many of the appliances that Billy Sweet recommends and installs are available in various models to fit with the aesthetics of the home.
Are you dreading winter because you can’t choose which heat appliance you’d like to use? Billy Sweet Chimney Sweeps offers only the industry’s best stoves, fireplaces, and inserts. Our certified chimney sweeps are experienced and trained in installation and maintenance of all of our appliances. Don’t wait until it’s too cold! Call today to discuss your home heating options with a Billy Sweet chimney sweep.
by Billy Sweet | Aug 3, 2016 | Chimney Maintenance
One thing you do not want to experience while enjoying the ambiance of a wood-burning fireplace is a foul odor. It happens all too often and can mean serious problems. It can happen during burning season, or during the summer. No matter when the smell occurs, you should call a professional right away in order to find and fix the cause.
First, identify the smell. It’s important to identify the smell that is coming from your chimney or appliance, because then you can figure out the cause easily.
Musty or Mildew Smells
This most often means there is moisture in the chimney. This can be caused by a chimney leak of some kind. If could be that the flue liner is damaged, the masonry has been compromised, or the cap, or flashing is missing. A professional can make an assessment and decide a course of action.
Woodsy or Smokey Smells
A smokey smell means your chimney isn’t venting as it should. When a chimney works properly, there should not be smoke or a smokey smell in the house. The chimney should vent all byproducts with the exception of a small percentage of particulate matter and some vapors.
A smokey smell can also mean that you aren’t burning the proper wood in your fireplace or appliance. You should only burn properly seasoned wood, meaning it has been cut and set aside to dry for a given amount of months. Harder woods should dry longer than softer woods before being burned. When wood is burned “wet” or “green” it can cause a smoke problem in the home. It can also cause the fire to burn less hot, as well as burn incompletely, lowering the efficiency of the chimney.
Foul Smells
If you are experiencing a foul odor from your chimney, you might have an animal problem. It’s possible that an animal attempted to nest or hibernate inside the chimney, only to become stuck and die. If you have a dead animal in your chimney, not only will it cause a great stink, but it will also affect the efficiency of the chimney’s ventilation. Animals, even small ones, can cause an obstruction, essentially lowering efficiency as well as raising the risk of flue fire. When the chimney works less efficiently, the gases rise too slowly, and can cause fires, even igniting the obstruction itself.
Call a Professional
When it comes to your chimney and home heating appliance, it’s better to be safe than sorry. If you smell something in your chimney that wasn’t present before, you should call in a CSIA Certified Chimney Sweep. A CCS is able to assess quickly and plan accordingly. At Billy Sweet our chimney sweeps are experienced diagnosing and correcting chimney problems as simple as a draft problem that can cause a smokey smell, and as serious as a water leak, causing unseen damage. Let a professional worry about your chimney so you don’t have to.
Don’t let your stinky chimney become an expensive or dangerous problem. Call Bill Sweet Chimney Sweep today, or schedule an appointment online.
by Billy Sweet | Jul 20, 2016 | Chimney Inspection
If your home or property has a chimney it is recommended that you have it cleaned regularly and inspected annually, before and during burning season. The Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA) recommends a chimney inspection annually even if nothing has changed with the chimney. However, if there has been any changes to the 
chimney, it should undergo a level two inspection. A level two inspection requires a video scan. Other reasons to schedule a video scan for your chimney is if you’re suspecting damage or debris. Anything that obstructs the chimney or allows damage to persist in the chimney can put your entire family and home at risk of fire.
Reasons to Schedule Video Surveillance
The chimney is a closed system. The ‘old west’ system of using a mirror to check for obstruction and damage is long gone. Today it’s not only yourself that is invested in your property. Your real estate agent, insurance adjuster, and mortgage lender all want to know that your chimney is sound. Video surveillance is the best way to get a detailed report on the condition of your chimney.
There are other reasons to schedule a video scan for your chimney. For instance, if you notice a problem with your chimney, suspect damage, or blockage, it’s a good time to have it done. A video scan can detect:
- Debris
- It can be caused from animals nesting, or leaves and twigs falls into the chimney from the top. Either way, debris can cause blockage, as well as fire hazard.
- Creosote.
- A natural byproduct of organic fire, creosote attaches to the walls of the chimney flue. If left unchecked and if regular chimney sweeps are neglected, this creosote can persist and buildup, resulting in glazed creosote [http://www.csia.org/about-csia/faq.aspx#6]. Glazed creosote is an extreme fire hazard, as it not only slows the venting process, but is highly flammable.
- Damage.
- Even a hairline crack in a chimney flue can let moisture in, wreaking havoc on your chimney system. Cracks like this cannot be seen with the naked eye, and are best detected with a video scan.
Call a Professional Today
A chimney sweep company that offers chimney inspection should also offer video scans. Billy Sweet doesn’t only offer video scans, but we use the best technology for the job. Our CSIA certified chimney sweeps use the Chim-Scan camera system and the Kohler Vis2000-Pro to properly inspect your chimney. Our sweeps are experienced in using this equipment to locate leaks, voids, and other problems with your chimney, as well as to verify the chimney is clean and ready to work following a cleaning or repair.
Billy Sweet Chimney Sweeps not only uses video surveillance to check on your chimney during an inspection, but also to check our work. You won’t have to wonder if the job is done correctly, because we offer our customers a detailed report that is acceptable to officials like real estate and insurance agents.
Don’t leave yourself guessing about your chimney’s safety. Worry less and schedule a chimney scan today.
by Billy Sweet | Jul 6, 2016 | Chimney Maintenance
After a long winter of wood-burning you don’t want to worry about
your fireplace and chimney. You want to enjoy your summer, and avoid dealing with a stinky chimney.
Seasons and Your Chimney
During the burning season your chimney is working to heat the house. As organic material is burned, a byproduct is left in the chimney flue called creosote. Creosote builds up onto the lining of the chimney, is heated and cooled, and becomes a glazed substance known as level 3, or glazed creosote. Glazed creosote is highly flammable and can cause blockage, slowing the rise of hot vapors, which raises the risk of ignition and flue fire.
If this creosote isn’t removed after burning season, the risk of fire is no longer present during the summer. However, creosote is a very dense material which begins to have a foul odor if moisture reaches it. During the summer months, when humidity is high, homeowners may notice an odor coming from the chimney. This odor is most likely creosote buildup in the chimney.
Fall begins burning season once again, and no chimney should be used without a proper cleaning and inspection.
Recommended Chimney Sweeps and Inspections
The Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA) recommends regular chimney sweeps, and annual chimney inspections. To ensure the safety of your family and property, you should hire a CSIA certified chimney sweep for your cleaning and inspection. It’s at this appointment that all creosote will be removed and the chimney is put into working condition for another burning season. If you decide to schedule a chimney sweep during the summer, it will help with the chimney odor as well.
The Chimney Safety Institute of America recommends some additional steps homeowners can take to decrease the odors from the chimney.
Install a Damper
A professional chimney sweep should be able to fit and install a damper to your chimney system to prevent the stinky air from falling into the fireplace or appliance.
Correct the Draft Problem
If air is being pulled down the chimney there may be a draft problem in the home. Another appliance may pull air from the chimney, or the house may be too tight, and need a vent elsewhere in the house. Try and crack a window in a different part of the house. If a draft is causing your stinky chimney, a damper could also correct the problem.
Household Hacks
Some homeowners have had luck with using household products to prevent a stinky chimney. Placing baking soda inside the appliance or fireplace is one common method used. Another method is to use kitty litter to collect the odors.
The best way to correct and prevent a stinky chimney is to keep up with the regular cleaning and maintenance of your chimney. And, if the smell persists, call a professional! At Billy Sweet we are quick to assess a problem. Our technicians are familiar with the area’s climate and seasons, and we know how to stop odors, even caused by natural humidity.
Call Billy Sweet Chimney Sweeps today and say goodbye to your stinky chimney this summer.
