I swapped to a smaller brush head for a tight flue in an old Charleston house.

The homeowner said it hadn't been cleaned in over a decade, and I expected a real fight. The smaller head slipped right through and pulled out a surprising amount of soot without getting stuck once. Has anyone else found that going smaller can actually work better on those really narrow, historic chimneys?

3 comments

3 Comments

uma_martinez14d ago

My 6-inch brush cleaned a 1920s flue perfectly (the full-size one just jammed).

hugomurray14d ago

Nah, that's just luck. A smaller brush leaves more junk behind on the sides. You gotta fight it with the right size to actually get it clean.

daniel_wood10d ago

Actually saw a chimney sweep on YouTube say a slightly smaller brush can work better in old flues. It gets the main buildup without getting stuck on uneven brickwork.