Remove Creosote Buildup with a Good Chimney Cleaning It’s going to be a rainy Halloween with the weatherman calling for rain all weekend. The temperature is expected to drop to 56°-58° over the weekend- brrrh. Many fire prevention professionals are encouraging Houstonians to check their heating systems as the weather turns cooler. Over here at American Fireplace we’re expecting to get really busy as customers are setting up appointments to clean out their chimneys. While the chimneys that are used seasonally can give us their owners the most problems, even those that aren’t used often need a good cleaning at least every other year. More than one-third of Americans use fireplaces, wood stoves and other fuel-fired appliances as the primary heat sources for their home heating needs. While it might seem that a chimney cleaning can be a home maintenance task that can put off, many people are unaware of the fire risks involved when doing so. According to the National Fire Protection Association U.S. fire departments responded to an estimated average of 357,000 home structure fires annually during the 2009-2013 period. The damages that these fires caused were significant, causing 2,470 civilian fire deaths, 12,890 civilian fire injuries and $6.9 billion in direct damage. From the chart below, the leading causes of home structure fires was cooking equipment 45% of the time but heating equipment was second with 16% of the home structure fires. 1/2 Remove Creosote Buildup with a Good Chimney Cleaning Source: NFPA Fact Sheet While up minerals, flue of temperature expel smoke, fireplaces, they smoke, water stick is wood creosote high vapor, to the stoves enough, inner gases, ischimney. aand walls dangerous the unburned buildup of the by-product chimney wood of work creosote particles, together on must to the chimney hydrocarbon, heat be wood removed. the flue burning home, walls tar When fog burn process. can and the the start assorted internal wood Made a or You shooting rumbling newer and mortar. can masonry detect from sound the achimney and chimney top buildup of the the fires from high by there. temperatures achimneys loud In In some cracking the case cases (2000°F) orofand popping aafrom chimney chimney that noise, are fire fire reached may flames occurring sound can and in melt like dense an athe older low bricks Fireplace An equipped chimney annual fire. today! with chimney Don’t specialized let cleaning a chimney tools prevents and fire brushes take creosote away remove buildup. your most creosote, Professional important reducing investment. chimney the chance cleaners Call of American asmoke 2/2