Hot take: Hemp rope was worth the switch after all

I've been sweeping chimneys for about 12 years now, and I always used polypropylene rope for my brushes and rods. Thought hemp rope was just some old-school hype that would rot and fall apart. Last fall I got a job at a historic house in Richmond, and the owner insisted I use hemp because of the old clay flue liner. I figured I'd give it a shot to keep the job. After three sweeps on that chimney, the rope held up fine and actually gripped the brush way better. No slipping like I get with poly. Plus it didn't melt when I accidentally got it too close to the ash dump. I still think poly has its place for certain jobs, but I've started stocking hemp for the older masonry work. Anyone else made that switch and found it works better on certain flues?

2 comments

2 Comments

averymartin16d ago

Funny how the old stuff just works better sometimes.

stella_lane15d agoMost Upvoted

Not a lot of planned obsolescence back then.