15
The week I swept 47 chimneys and every single one was a mess
Last month I had a week that was both my best and worst in ten years of sweeping. I got called out to a big old house in Brookline, Massachusetts, and the homeowner said they hadn't cleaned their fireplace in 15 years. When I opened the damper, a pile of soot and bird nesting fell right onto my head. It took me over two hours to scrape out three inches of packed creosote from the smoke chamber. On the flip side, that same afternoon I did a quick sweep at a newer build where the liner was like glass and I was done in 20 minutes. The money was great that week, around $2,100 total, but my back has never hurt that bad. Has anyone else dealt with a house that was clearly neglected for a decade or more, or am I the only one who keeps landing those jobs?
3 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In3 Comments
emery19922d agoMost Upvoted
Right, but that dead raccoon story sounds like it was in the flue, not the smoke chamber. Big difference in cleanup.
6
the_susan22d ago
Friend of mine does this same work. He walked into a place that looked fine on the outside. Opened the flue and a dead raccoon came crashing down with a pile of leaves. Took him three hours just to get the debris out. The smell was so bad he almost quit on the spot. He said the homeowner just shrugged and asked if he could finish before lunch. Some people really let things go for years.
3