before the first winter we were here, we hired a local professional chimney company to come inspect and clean our chimney. they did some stuff from the bottom that as far as i can remember did not involve removing the jotul wood stove that was here. they did their thing and left. i don’t know how long it been since it had been properly cleaned.
come 2am on new year’s day, we have a chimney fire from a heavy amount of accumulated creosote! dry wood, normal use, in mountain north carolina, not the frozen north. so i bought a brush and used it the next day, deciding to try to clean it out every couple months. it’s since become just once a year, between heating seasons. have never seen anything like the amount of creosote from that first cleanout. i think the pro’s just didn’t actually do anything.
tree crop and perennial vegetable enthusiast. co-owner of the Asheville Nuttery and the Nutty Buddies orchard group.
