Warning: Blew past a flue blockage with the wrong brush and paid for it

I was cleaning a chimney for a customer in the old part of town last Tuesday when I hit a hard creosote clog near the top. Figured I'd just muscle through with my standard wire brush since I was in a hurry. Next thing I know I've pushed the blockage down and cracked their clay liner in two spots. Had to rip out the whole upper section and reline it for $450 out of my own pocket just to make it right. Anyone else ever learned the hard way that speed costs more than taking an extra 10 minutes?

2 comments

2 Comments

kaip116d ago

Four hundred fifty bucks seems steep for a clay liner patch, but I guess chimney work in the old part of town ain't cheap. I've seen people crack liners just from a bad draft and they never got a bill. Maybe you're being too hard on yourself.

robert_roberts6d ago

Oh man, that's rough. I remember back when I tried to clear a dryer vent with one of those flimsy plastic brush kits from the hardware store. The thing just snapped off inside the ductwork about halfway through, and I spent the next four hours trying to fish out the pieces with a coat hanger. My wife still brings it up every time she does laundry. Sometimes you just gotta accept that the cheap or quick way is gonna cost you double.