How to clean a fireplace (fireplace in a private house) from soot with your own hands

Owners of private houses should periodically think about the condition of the chimney pipes. During the period of use, the heater is contaminated with acid deposits, soot and condensation. Therefore, it is important to carry out preventive cleaning of the chimney at least once a month. And how to do it correctly, you can read more.

Soot formation

A distinction is made between the following causes of excessive soot formation:

1. Raw wood. When poorly dried raw materials are sent to the furnace, they must first dry, which requires a significant amount of heat. As a result, the temperature in the furnace decreases, the coal is subcooled, and black smoke appears. Over time, if you often use damp wood, the chimney will clog and the pipe will need to be cleaned.
2. Waste incineration. If you heat in a private house with materials such as plywood, remnants of chipboard, OSB, plastic, bags, glue and polymers in it, they will quickly clog the chimney. Within a few months, the pipe can be completely clogged.
3. Insufficient traction.This can be observed due to: the low height of the pipe; soot accumulations; the use of cross air supply.
4. Quality of firewood. Softwood essences are not suitable for the hearth.

Cleaning methods

There are several ways to clean the chimney. The most effective methods are considered to be a mechanical or chemical method. Although some building owners resort to folk tricks.

Mechanical

Mechanical cleaning of pipes from soot is considered the most effective. Below are recommendations on how to do it correctly.

Tools

During mechanical cleaning, the following tools are used:

1. Heart.
2. Stiff brush.
3. Scraper.

Heart

A similar tool is used to get rid of various obstacles that interfere with the normal release of combustion products. The core effectively removes the soot that remains on the walls of the chimney.

To use the tool, it is attached to a thick, strong cable and immersed in the chimney flue. Then the core is lowered.

Long handle stiff brush

Hard brushes are no less effective in cleaning soot from fireplaces. These tools are purchased in specialized stores or made by hand. By the way, in the second version, a handle of the required length is made without any problems.

Long handled scraper

If the pipes have not been cleaned for a long time or poorly dried firewood with a high resin content has been used as the raw material for the furnace, a significant layer of deposits is removed with a scraper with a long handle. You can also make a similar device yourself or buy it in a store.

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Security engineering

Compliance with safety precautions when cleaning chimneys is a prerequisite, since the actions are carried out at height and during the manipulations, you will have to handle heavy tools.

1. You absolutely must use insurance.
2. It is optimal to plan all work in dry, calm weather.
3. It is recommended not to work alone.
4. Inspection hatches must be closed to prevent soot from entering the room.
5. It is forbidden to carry out manipulations while intoxicated, in a state of fatigue or during the period of taking drugs that affect the speed of reaction.

Instructions

The drain cleaning procedure includes the following steps:

1. Manipulations are carried out on the roof.
2. When cleaning, it is rational to use all available tools. If the plaque does not clear up, you will have to try harder.
3. If solid plugs form, you will need to dismantle the chimney. This measure is considered extreme and should be used if it is not possible to clean the chimney in any other way.

Chemical products

Chemical cleaning is considered a modern cleaning method and now there are many special preparations.

Log sweeper

The log chimney sweeper is a preparation that is a briquette capable of emitting substances during combustion that dry out impurities on the walls of the pipes. Subsequently, all the dirt falls into the hearth. If the fireplace is used about twice a week, for preventive purposes, then it is worth using such a briquette about every six months.

Kominicek

The product is placed on the hot coals and the firebox door is securely closed. Under the influence of high temperature in the furnace, special chemical elements are released from the granules of the preparation, which dissolve the soot.

PCC anti-carbon chemical composition

PHC is a powder that is sent separately or with the firewood to the kiln. When burned, it gradually cleans the pipes of dirt. The powder is placed in the hearth with the pack.

Hansa

This agent coats the layer of active gas impurities, causing the resins to dry out, become brittle and crumble. The effect lasts for several days.

Popular

Popular recommendations are considered unsafe and can damage the walls of the chimney, so before resorting to them, it is worth assessing the risks.

Naphthalene

Before using the method, it should be ensured that there are no cracks, destruction or holes on the outside of the chimney; there is no accumulation of work items in the channel. Naphthalene is used for cleaning in the amount of a tablet, which is placed on the burning raw materials.

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A mixture of vitriol, nitrate and coke

To arrange the fireplace using this method, you need to mix the following components:

1. Copper sulfate - 1/5.
2. Saltpetre - 1/7.
3. Coke - 1/2.

The resulting mixture is placed in a heated oven. The layer of soot is destroyed, which comes out with the flue gases, cleaning the pipe.

Aspen or birch firewood

By burning birch or aspen wood, you can achieve the maximum combustion temperature in the fireplace. At this time, the flame penetrates the structure, which leads to the combustion of impurities.

A similar method is used when it is certain that the chimney structure is solid.

nutshell

Walnut shells are characterized by high heat transfer.Therefore, in order to clean the chimney with it, a couple of two-liter canisters with this raw material are placed in the combustion chamber. The smoke will get so hot that even the soot will fly off the walls.

Rock salt

The rock salt method is considered common and is used as a preventive measure. There is nothing complicated in the process itself: the fuel is sprinkled with salt in large quantities, which slows down the formation of soot on the walls of the pipes.

Potato peel or starch

This option consists in the fact that dry potato peelings are placed in a heater. Due to the starch released during combustion, the soot is gradually destroyed. Cleaning with potato scraps will remove the soot from the pipes in a few days.

Features of stainless steel pipe cleaning

Stainless steel pipes are distinguished by their excellent internal coating quality. Thanks to this feature, the condensate flows unhindered into a special collector. The absence of condensation ensures that soot does not form in the pipes. However, sometimes, for one reason or another, pollutions occur, and in such a case, they must be eliminated in the following way:

1. A round brush on a flexible shaft is inserted into the hole in the tee. Carbon deposits are removed by rotating the tool from an electric drill.
2. If the carbon deposits are persistent, cleaning is carried out by burning with a torch. This will require dismantling the pipe.

How to remove tar deposits

Some fuels are liable to form viscous constituents, which are difficult to treat afterwards. It is in such cases that it is recommended to systematically resort to chemicals such as Hansa. The action of this drug is aimed directly at destroying resinous deposits.

Tips & Tricks

In order to extend the life of the chimney, the following subtleties should be observed:

1. It is not necessary to take coniferous raw materials as fuel, since this leads to the accumulation of resin on the walls of the pipe, which is very problematic to remove.
2. The wood must be dry, otherwise soot and water vapor will remain on the walls of the pipes.
3. Do not burn garbage in a furnace. This rule applies in particular to articles made of plastic and other synthetic substances.
4. The optimal raw material for the oven is dry hardwood. After each hearth, it is recommended to burn some aspen wood, which will help remove soot from the chimney.

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Complex stove structures

Complex structures include a chimney with a bend. It is generally not recommended to install this type of chimney. As a rule, such advice is due to the design features of residential buildings.

As for the process of cleaning the pipe bend, it will not be a problem if, before installing the system, you install inspection hatches, thanks to which later you can easily remove the resulting contamination.

It is not necessary to install a structure containing more than two elbows, but if there is no alternative, the installation of hatches is necessary.

Season and weather

Cleaning of chimneys for preventive purposes is carried out before the start of the heating season and at its end. If there is an urgent need for such manipulations, they should be carried out in dry, calm weather.

Prophylaxis

Experts say that if you approach the operation of the furnace correctly, cleaning the pipes may not be necessary at all for the entire period of use of the heater. There are common rules for preventative measures that will prolong the life of any stove (chimney), including:

1. The stove must be heated regularly. In the warm season, fuel consumption is reduced to a minimum, but the fireplace does not stop. A small amount of wood chips or paper is used as raw material.
2. Experienced owners advise for preventive purposes to clean once a year. This measurement is carried out even if the level of contamination is negligible.

homemade strawberry

Some craftsmen prefer to make a cleaning tool with their own hands. This is not a bad option, since a homemade item will absolutely meet individual needs.

For a homemade strawberry, you will need the following:

1. Big bolt.
2. Washers.
3. Steel wire.
4. Pliers.

The steel wire is cut into equal parts, the length of which will depend on the size of the fireplace opening. The resulting segments are screwed onto a bolt and fastened with washers. Wrapping should be done almost the full length of the bolt. The bolt is attached to the cable and the brush can be used.