Lou Curley's Chimney Service

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Eagles Schedule and $15 Chimney Cleaning Coupon

Monday, January 13, 2014

Combustibles found during a chimney inspection

The 2 pictures above were taken looking up a fireplace from the firebox. The picture on the left shows a gap in the smoke chamber area. The picture on the right is a look through the gap. In the second picture, you can see charred wood framing and smoke stains on the back side of the plaster. It was only a matter of time until this was going to cause a structure fire. This is one of the many reasons that you should have your chimneys inspected on an annual basis.

Monday, January 6, 2014

An article I wrote for the CSIA's website

Here is an article that I wrote for the Chimney Safety Institute of America's (CSIA) website. It deals with the importance of hiring a CSIA Certified Chimney Sweep.

Monday, December 30, 2013

A blocked furnace chimney is a potential carbon monoxide hazard

Most homes in this area were built with a chimney that vents a gas or oil furnace, boiler, and/or water heater. When these chimneys were built, they were lined with clay flue tiles. Over time the acids in the exhaust will break down the face of the tile lining. Once the facing is gone the tiles will break down much faster (they flake apart like a clay flower pot left outside). This deterioration process is accelerated with today's higher efficiency heating appliances. Once the tiles start to fall apart, they could block the flow of exhaust gasses up the chimney causing flue gasses (including carbon monoxide) to spill into the living area.

A common misconception is that this flue is inspected by the heating contractor when the furnace is being serviced. It is not.

This is one of the reasons why an annual inspection should be done on your chimney, whether or not you have or use a fireplace.

Friday, February 1, 2013