House Chimney Question

[Muddy Boots]

Ok so it's time to start uising the wood burning fire at home and I've run into a problem.

Yesterday whilst sweeping out the chimeny the brush has detached from the end of the pole and is lodged in the chimney.

The Chimney is clear as at present other than the brush being stuck somewhere along it's length.

As I see it my options are as follows.

Buy a new set of chimney brushes and see if I can push it through from the fire place.

Call a professional chimney sweep but no idea how much this would cost.

Start a small fire and see if the heat will melt the bristles on the brush subsequently allowing it to drop back out.

Third option is a google search suggestion not a great idea I have come up with.

As mentioned above there is a clear air flow along the length of the chimney and my worry is that if I do try and melt the stuck brush out is this likely to cause a chimney fire?

The flue is unlined as far as I can tell and was swept last year. There appears to be little soot in there currently and the fire is only used seldomly.

Any thoughts, advice, recommendations welcome.

Cheers in advance.

 

[sapper1]

Can you get to the brush from the top of the chimney?If you can then fix a piece of timber to the end of the rods and try and push the brush back down.

 

[Muddy Boots]

Can you get to the brush from the top of the chimney?If you can then fix a piece of timber to the end of the rods and try and push the brush back down.

I did consider climbing up there and having a look but I'm not that keen on that to be honest as I don't want to open a hornet's nest of broken roof tiles and legs.

 

[sapper1]

Maybe a hook on the rods to pull it back down?

 

[charleslockerbie]

drain clearing rods?

 

[TallMikeM]

Before H&S became such an industry/obsession you could send small children up there, but sadly those days are long gone. And they call this progress!!!

ahem, I'd go with the new set/drain cleaner rod option first then if that fails call out a sweep.

 

[Bushwhacker]

Stick the pole up there and push the brush right out onto the roof.

 

[sandbender]

Do not try the fire option, your house will fill with smoke. lightly gaffa tape a piece of wood to the end of the poles so that it sits at a slight angle to them, tie a suitable length of rope to that piece of wood. push the poles back up the chimney and attempt to push that piece of wood through the bristles, if you succeed and have 'hooked' the brush then use the rope to try to yank it down.

 

[Muddy Boots]

I've used a wod of material taped to the pole and tried to push it out throught the top of the chinmey but it didn't clear it. I could see the wodding clearly out of the top of the chimeny so my guess is the brush must be lying flat against the chimney on the inside.

I did think about using a hook but my worry is damaging the masonary inside the chimney as I know some of this is loose.

I reckon buying a new set of brushes and trying that might be the way forward and then biting the bullet and calling in a professional sweep.

Thanks for all the advice guys.

 

[Ogri the trog]

If you really can't feel any obstruction in the chimney,
I recon the brush has fallen off into a side chamber - quite possibly the fireplace (either existing or blocked) of an upstairs room.
Can you gain access further up the flue to search for it?
I'd not want ot start a fire beneath it just in case it starts to melt/burn away and then falls back into the flue and creates a Carbon Monoxide/fire risk for years to come.

HTH

Ogri the trog

 

[Bushwhacker]

Send a small victorian boy up there.

 

[ged]

Get yourself a USB webcam with built-in LED illumination and a five metre USB cable. You can push that up the chimney to see what the problem is and you'll have a better idea how to dislodge it. Try not to get that stuck as well. Probably better to point the cam downwards and look from the top so that soot and dust doesn't cover the lens and obscure the view. You might want to consider tying a length of cord to the head next time so you can pull on it if the head does become detached.

You should seriously consider lining the chimney for a wood burner.

The UK building regulations changed at the beginning of October 2010, see for example http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/uploads/br/BR_PDF_ADJ_2010.pdf

 

[No Idea]

Would you be able to pin a U shaped thick piece of wire to your remaining poles, with a string so you can let it straighten if it gets snagged?

There is a trick to using rodding poles, you always rotate them clockwise as you push and pull them to stop them coming undone. Sorry for mentioning that after they came apart, but if it hasnt occurred to you, it could stop you losing some more.

On a drain rodding set, there are also some twisted wire thread things, that might dislodge it if you have any.

 

[jonquirk]

This happened to me once as my living room chimney cranks left and then right to clear a closed off fireplace in the bedroom above, despite trying to keep clockwise torque on the bottom rod.

I was already familiar with the top of the chimney, having been up there to install tv and radio aerials. I clambered up (good job I go rock climbing for a hobby) and lowered a weight (a tractor pto shaft universal joint) on a thin rope until it met the brush. A few drops of the weight onto the brush soon had the rods back in the hearth.