It is tough to prevent creosote buildup completely, but it is said that nothing is impossible, and there are some ways from which you can avoid creosote in your chimney. Creosote is the inevitable byproduct of combustion, and when we use firewood, the smoky-smelling substance develops.
Creosote buildup increases when the air supply is restricted, unseasoned wood is used to make a fire, and the chimney temperature is relaxed.
Today, we will explore Some Uncommon ways to avoid creosote in your chimney.
1. Don’t start the fire
A fire requires oxygen to breathe and continues to burn. Always make sure that your damper is open all the way when starting the fire.
You can regulate the fire damper by adjusting but be careful to avoid cutting off too much oxygen. Fires at lower temperatures create more creosote.
2. Prime your flues before each fire
Warming up the chimney before each fire helps start the draft and can help your fires get started and get up to operating temperature more quickly, providing a cleaner burn sooner into a fire.
3. Build hot fires that burn effectively instead of slow-burning
Make sure not to close the fireplace doors (ceramic glass) or restrict airflow adjustments too soon before the fire gets hot enough. A good indication that your fire may not be hot enough is if it starts to smoke and look like it might die out.
At that point, the glass will also get dirty relatively fast, and you are sending excess gases up the chimney.
4. Only burn seasoned firewood
One way to avoid creosote in your chimney is not to burn newly cut, unseasoned firewood. Cut wood typically takes six to twelve months to get to low moisture content.
5. If your chimney is on the outside of your house, warm the flue before lighting a fire
When a chimney is on the outside of the house or in any other way is not insulated efficiently, it can be difficult to warm the air inside the flue, causing poor combustion in the fire, a more significant amount of creosote buildup, and a smoky fireplace.
6. Don’t overload your firebox
How you stack your logs plays an essential role in the efficiency of your fireplace. The more adequately your wood burns, the less creosote is produced. Ensure air space between the logs when stacking your wood logs.
The best way to avoid creosote in your chimney is by allowing oxygen to flow around the records will help it burn more efficiently while reducing the amount of smoke, soot, and creosote.
7. Reduce condensation
The best way to lessen the condensation on the chimney is to burn much hotter fires to prevent the particles from reaching the chimney. Installing a chimney liner is the best way to keep the flue gasses hotter inside the chimney to avoid excess condensation.
However, preventing the gas from carrying the heavy creosote particles up the chimney is the proper defense for condensing flue gases.
Final words
We hope this guide helped you understand how to avoid creosote. Regular cleaning of the vent in your chimney reduces the fire risk by removing fresh creosote deposits.
Contact Smoky Sweeper to schedule a complete chimney inspection and certified chimney cleaning today.
