Chimney sweeping in Cottage Grove, MN
A chimney sweep removes the soot and creosote that wood smoke leaves inside the flue, smoke chamber and firebox. We brush the whole flue with a vacuum running, cover the room, and tell you what we saw on the way up.
Stop and call first if
- smoke is coming into the room
- you smell smoke when the fireplace is cold
- you hear scratching or animals in the chimney
- there is a new water stain near the chimney
If anything is burning now, call 911 first.
What a chimney sweep actually removes
Wood smoke cools as it rises, and some of it sticks to the inside of the flue as soot and creosote. Creosote comes in stages. The first is a dry, sooty powder that brushes off easily. The second is flaky and crunchy. The third is a hard, shiny glaze that the Chimney Safety Institute of America describes as a type that cannot be removed with mechanical sweeping alone.
All three burn. A chimney fire happens when that fuel catches inside the flue, and it can crack flue tiles and spread to the house. That is why CSIA's guideline is to sweep a masonry fireplace at 1/8 inch of sooty buildup, and sooner if any glaze is present.
When to book a sweep
- Once a year if you burn wood regularly. The NFPA 211 standard calls for a yearly inspection, and the inspection tells you whether a sweep is due.
- Before the first fire of the season. Late summer and early fall are the easiest times to get on the schedule.
- After you buy a house whose fireplace history you do not know.
- When the fireplace starts to smell, draft poorly or push smoke into the room.
How we sweep, step by step
- Drop cloths go down from the door to the hearth.
- The fireplace opening is sealed and a vacuum runs during the whole sweep to keep dust out of the room.
- We brush the flue, the smoke shelf and smoke chamber, and the firebox.
- We check the damper, the flue liner we can see, the crown and the cap.
- We clean up and walk you through what we found.
Chimney sweeping in Cottage Grove homes
The first suburban neighborhoods here, like Thompson Grove west of Highway 61, date from the late 1950s. Those ramblers mostly have one brick chimney, sometimes shared with the furnace and water heater. A sweep in an older home is also a chance to catch cracked crown concrete and flue tiles before they let water in. Newer homes are more often gas, where the job is less about creosote and more about keeping the vent clear.
Chimney sweeping questions
How long does a chimney sweep take?
Most single-flue fireplaces take one to two hours, including setup and cleanup. A chimney with heavy buildup, more than one flue, or a stove with a long pipe run takes longer.
Will a chimney sweep make a mess in my house?
It should not. We cover the floor from the door to the hearth, seal the fireplace opening and run a vacuum while we brush, so soot is pulled out instead of drifting into the room.
Can I clean my chimney myself?
You can brush a flue yourself, but you will not see cracked tiles, a failing crown or glazed creosote from below. The yearly inspection in NFPA 211 is the part most people skip, and it is the part that finds problems early.
Do I need a sweep if I only burn a few fires a year?
Maybe not every year, but you still need the yearly inspection. Light use can leave less creosote, while nests, debris and water damage happen whether or not you burn.
Book a chimney sweep in Cottage Grove
Call, or send a request and we call you back.
Also on this site: chimney inspection, chimney repair and dryer vent cleaning.