Put chimney cleaning on list for winter

Oct. 2, 2005

MARY AMES\Frontiersman reporter

MAT-SU - When it's time to make a list of things to do to get ready for winter, cleaning the chimney should end up toward the top.

People should have their chimneys or wood-stove stacks inspected as well as cleaned, according to John Atwell II, battalion chief and safety officer for the Central Mat-Su Fire Department."Have a qualified professional, someone who installs wood stoves or cleans them for a living, look at your system," Atwell said. "They can see if things are out of order."

Creosote buildup in wood-burning systems causes fires every winter.

"We always have a few," Atwell said. "Prior to Enstar bringing in natural gas, we had quite a few."

Another reason to talk to an installer or cleaning professional is because some stoves are designed to hold a slow-burning fire, and some aren't, according to Atwell.

So for some folks, stoking the stove and heading out for the day is fine. For others, it could be a recipe for disaster.

"The key is to burn well-seasoned wood," Atwell said. "Slow-burning green wood builds up creosote. Over time you burn like that and then have a hot fire and that's when you get a chimney fire."

It's not just creosote that can clog the flue. As a professional chimney cleaner, John Williams has seen some other things pushed out of chimneys.

"Once I found two dead ducks," said Williams, owner of Southwick Chimney Cleaners.

Now is a good time to clean the chimney, he said, instead of waiting for the first winter storm. He's cleaned out bird nests, bee nests and even some bats over the years.

"Not on a regular basis," he said, "but about once a year I will find something like that."

Some commercial chemical products promise to clean chimneys or reduce creosote when they are tossed into the fire.

"I wouldn't count on that," Atwell said. "Have someone look at it and see that everything is in order."

Atwell also recommends having multi-purpose ABC fire extinguishers handy, and an extinguisher in the kitchen specifically designed for grease fires.

"I personally have three at home," he said.

Contact Mary Ames at 352-2284.