Heating boilers such as stoves, fireplaces, despite their perfect design, require periodic maintenance. The chimney becomes clogged especially quickly, the clogging rate depends on many factors: the type of fuel used, the quality of the operating conditions of the device, the type of furnace device. Even under all normal conditions, the pipe still needs to be inspected and cleaned at least once a year. To carry out the operation, you can invite a specialist, or you can clean the chimney on your own. Knowing how to clean it with folk methods, doing the work yourself will not be difficult, and the benefits will be great: the pipe is in order, the draft is good, the heating is efficient, safe for yourself and others.
The products of combustion, one way or another, clog the chimney, the gap in the pipe narrows over time, the draft becomes weaker, as a result, the smoke, unable to go outside, begins to move in the opposite direction, that is, settle in the room, smoky it, filling it with carbon monoxide, dangerous to human health. Also blockage in the pipe leads to other troubles and threats:
- with low draft, more condensate accumulates inside the pipe, which only accelerates clogging;
- soot is an excellent thermal insulator, when it is accumulated in a thick layer, the furnace channel stops heating to the desired temperature, therefore, the efficiency drops significantly, the fuel used to ensure normal heating of the home will require much more;
- solid particles accumulated in soot do not have time to burn out completely, remain combustible and at any moment, in the event of gas flows upward, they can give a spark, ignite, and this is fraught not only with the rapid burning of the pipe walls, but also igniting the whole house as a whole. The entire area becomes vulnerable to an accidental flash of a spark, its possible escape from the pipe at any moment. It is for this reason that fires most often occur in buildings, private houses heated by such stoves;
- from a chimney clogged with soot, lights can fly out into the street, hot solid particles can spread to neighboring buildings, and this is already a threat to neighbors.
With the totality of all the troubles, and they often happen all at the same time, tragic consequences in the form of a fire and losses after it simply cannot be avoided, therefore it is very important to periodically check the chimney and perform effective cleaning in a timely manner. It is best to start cleaning in early autumn, choose a cool day and look at the entire structure in detail, thoroughly.
How often should the pipe be cleaned?
If the furnace device is correctly coordinated, correctly installed, then the chimney will last for 2-3 years without any cleaning during this time. Nevertheless, the chimney should be cleaned 2 times a year for confidence and peace of mind, because a lot depends on the fuel used, the pipe becomes clogged faster from incinerated garbage, bags, plastic bottles. Over time, firewood also leads to clogging, no matter how high-quality they are, especially when laying them in their raw form or heating the room with resinous spruces and pines. Dry logs that have lain in the woodshed for at least a year and a half are considered the best material for a firebox. Only with such dry material the chimney becomes clogged much more slowly, there are practically no unburned particles left.
If the pipe is overgrown with soot, it is not difficult to determine: the smoke coming out of it will noticeably change its color, become darker and dirty. Ideally, in the chimney duct, it should be bright, clean, and easily ventilated. With the accumulation of soot in the pipe, it itself begins to smolder, the outgoing smoke becomes dense, dark, with strong soot, and the color of the flame itself changes, instead of a light orange color, it becomes richly dark, viscous. All these signs indicate that the time has come to clean the chimney, otherwise you can make yourself unnecessary problems, dangers such as fire, smoke in the room.
Ideally, it is better to check the chimney 2 times a year, in autumn and spring, especially since it needs to be inspected not only because of the accumulated soot, but also because of the ingress of other waste products into the pipe, falling into the hole from the outside of bird droppings, nests, cobwebs, dry branches, leaves.
There are many popular methods for cleaning the chimney pipe, after conducting an audit of the device, you just have to choose the best option for cleaning and get down to business, removing all the pollution and other waste in the pipe.
Folk ways to clean the chimney of the furnace
Soot is a decay product of burned fuel, 90% consists of carbon. It starts to burn at a temperature of 1000-1100 degrees, and not every pipe can withstand such heating. Not only the chimney, but also all the elements adjacent to it are also very hot, the risk of fire of the entire building increases significantly.
How to clean the chimney from soot with folk remedies? We suggest considering the most popular options:
Self cleaning
How to independently clean the chimney from soot is set out in step-by-step instructions:
How to clean a chimney with chemicals
What chemicals can be used to clean the chimney? Chemical products are usually the most effective at cleaning the pipe. They allow you to clean the entire cavity without residue, even the soot that has dried up inside the pipe. Chemicals should be used at the time of burning firewood. Then substances begin to be released that have a destructive effect on soot deposits, while absolutely harmless to the health of the person himself. Soot quickly falls down into the ash pan, after which it is simply raked out into a bucket, then the stove is completely cleaned.
Effective chemicals for cleaning chimneys from soot are:
Instructions for using the log "Chimney sweep"
Conclusion
In fact, cleaning the chimney on your own is not a problem, choose the best option for cleaning your pipe, given its condition, the degree of clogging of the channel, the amount of accumulated soot. Try not to throw unnecessary plastic bottles, all kinds of cans, milk and juice bags into the furnace. Following all the points of the instructions described above, you can completely cope with cleaning the chimney yourself, assistants and specialists in this matter will not be needed. However, if you are not confident in your abilities or do not want to get dirty, invite a professional who is able to do the job efficiently, with knowledge of the matter. Nevertheless, it is necessary to clean the chimney of soot from time to time. The draft will be better, the service life of the pipes will be longer, the device will be safer for you, as well as for the surrounding people and buildings.
