Old Smokey's Fireplace & Chimney's Blog

Santa is Coming, Is Your Chimney Clean?

Christmas Eve is almost here, and soon it will be a time for gathering around a warm fire with loved ones. However, once you put out your fire and go to bed on Christmas Eve, it will be Santa’s turn to show his appreciation to your family. Santa brings joy to your family, so why not return the favor by giving him a clean chimney to come down this Christmas. Santa doesn’t like his suit getting sooty, but another reason is for safety for all who lives in your home. At Old Smokey’s, we agree with Santa. A clean chimney is important, and we are here to help!

Be safe this holiday

The Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA) and the National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA) recommend you to get your chimney inspected and cleaned at least once a year. As you use your fireplace, soot, smoke, and gases are released. These gases go up your chimney, and they cool and often condense on the interior of your chimney. After a while, if enough of this byproduct accumulates, it forms a thick, black, tar-like substance called creosote. Creosote is combustible. If it ignites, it can start a chimney fire.

Another reason to get your chimney inspected and cleaned is to check for blockages in your chimney. There are a number of ways your chimney could get a blockage such as creosote build up, animal nesting, or debris falling into your chimney. In addition to being a fire hazard, chimney blockages can also create airflow issues. This creates some annoying issues such as poorly burning and less efficient fires.

Smoke, gases and warm air produced in your fireplace need a way to get out of your home. If your chimney is blocked, these byproducts may come back into your home. Having a house full of smoke can really put a damper for any gatherings. Another serious issue is carbon monoxide, this byproduct could happen when you burn wood or gas. Carbon monoxide leak can lead to a number of serious medical issues.

We can help

Santa wants you to have a safe holiday season, and our team at Old Smokey’s wants this for you too! That’s why it is very  important to have your chimney serviced by our CSIA certified chimney sweep.  Only a chimney sweep has the technical and safety training to properly and safely clean your chimney. Although this is our busy time of year, we still have appointment slots open.

Get your chimney cleaned today! You can call us at 800-876-6539 or schedule an appointment online. We look forward to hearing from you!

Trust Us for Your Annual Chimney Inspection!

It is critical to your family’s safety that your regularly used chimney is operating well. Even if your chimney is only occasionally used, you should still have it periodically inspected by a professional. This is because dirty chimneys are a potential fire hazard. In fact, The National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA) states that the leading contributor to home heating fires is having a chimney that isn’t clean.  However, this shouldn’t deter you from enjoying your fireplace this winter. We here at Old Smokey’s want to let you know that, with a little help and guidance from our professional chimney technicians, your chimney will be perfectly safe to operate this winter.

Why are inspections important?

Getting your chimney inspected by one of our chimney technicians is one of the most important things you can do for its health. This is because an inspection allows us to determine if there are any issues that may have risen over the past year that would affect how your chimney operates. During an inspection one of our highly skilled chimney technicians will look for any damage to the your chimney and fireplace masonry, such as cracked brick or crumbling mortar. We will also inspect the inside of your chimney to make sure that it isn’t clogged with any debris, animal nests, or creosote. Lastly, we will inspect any other chimney components (chimney crown, chimney cap, damper, etc.) and make sure they are in safe, operational condition.

Have your chimney inspected by a CSIA certified technician

When you get your chimney inspected, you want to make sure that your inspection is going to be done thoroughly and safely. That’s why it’s critical that you have your chimney inspected by a Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA) certified chimney technician.  To gain CSIA certification, a chimney technician must go through a tough training schedule, learning the latest chimney inspection and chimney maintenance techniques. Next, chimney technicians must learn about the latest in chimney fireplace and safety. Technicians are then allowed to be certified after they pass an exam related to their training and take an oath to perform their work ethically, never taking shortcuts or scamming their customers. At Old Smokey’s, we take CSIA certification very seriously. All of our chimney technicians are required to have CSIA certification to work for us. We want to make sure our customers are satisfied with our work and we want to assure them that we will keep their home and family free from hazards. That’s why being certified is important to us, because it is important to our customers.

If you haven’t had your chimney inspected in a while, you may be putting your home at risk. We still have appointment slots open, so call us at 800-876-6539 or 260-424-0009 or reach us online to set up an inspection with one of our chimney technicians. We look forward to serving you!