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Update: I finally got a clean pass on a 90-year-old flue in an old house
For years, my method for a really tough, narrow flue was just to go at it with the rods and brush until my arms gave out. I'd be up there for hours, coming down covered in soot and dust, and still not sure I got it all. Then about six months ago, I was working on a place in the historic district and the owner, a nice old guy named Frank, showed me his dad's old chimney sweep kit. It had these weird, flexible bamboo rods. I was skeptical, but I tried them on a bad bend last week. The difference was night and day. The bamboo has just enough give to follow the curve without getting stuck, and it doesn't scratch the old clay liner like steel can. I got the whole thing done in under an hour, and the camera showed it was spotless. Has anyone else found older tools sometimes work better on these antique systems?
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andrew92118d agoMost Upvoted
Bamboo rods, huh? That sounds like a story more than a real fix. A 90-year-old flue with bad bends is a nightmare, and I've seen steel rods get stuck and snap. If bamboo is so great, why did everyone switch to fiberglass and steel in the first place? I'd worry about it breaking apart inside the chimney.
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cameron_hernandez6918d ago
Yeah but come on, a clean pass with bamboo? That just sounds like luck. Andrew921 has a point about it breaking. I've had steel rods bind up on old mortar, but at least they don't splinter and leave a bunch of junk stuck in there. You get one good push on a tough spot and that bamboo is snapping, then you've got a bigger problem. Old tools are cool until they fail and leave you with a real mess.
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Totally agree about the bigger problem... that's the real kicker. You're right, steel might bind but at least it's one piece to deal with. A snapped bamboo rod splintering apart in some old flue sounds like an absolute nightmare to clear out. I'd be sweating just thinking about fishing all that out. Sometimes the old way is just the hard way.
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