Tried the cheap brush kit from a big box store against a quality SootEater setup

Last winter I grabbed a $30 brush and rod set from Home Depot to clean my neighbor's chimney. Took me almost 2 hours and I still missed a bunch of creosote near the top. Then I borrowed a SootEater from a buddy in Denver and blasted through the same job in 20 minutes flat. That spinning head just grabs everything without fighting you. Has anyone else found those budget kits are more trouble than they're worth?

3 comments

3 Comments

laura_allen11d ago

Wait, did you try the cheap one dry or with a drill? I've had way better luck just running those basic plastic brush kits with a cordless drill and they do fine for light cleaning.

cameronn6211d ago

Honestly the problem with the cheap brushes isn't the brush itself, it's the mounting. Those plastic adapters strip out after like 2 uses no matter what you do. I had better luck just gluing a cheap metal adapter to the plastic one. A little JB Weld and suddenly it's a $50 brush setup for $12. Total game changer. Nobody ever talks about that hack.

johnson.faith10d ago

Yeah the "total game changer" part is real. My buddy tried that JB Weld trick on his cheap brush and it held up for months until he lost the whole thing at a job site.