One of the most frequently asked questions in the industry is “how often should my chimney be cleaned?” The NFPA211 code recommends “inspecting annually and sweeping as often as necessary”. We have found a number of customers require more frequent sweeping than once per year. The contributing factors are chimney design, appliance size and efficiency, use of the system by the operator, wood type and moisture content. We have found that under the right circumstances a sweep done before the cold season starts may still require another sweep mid-season because the factors have added up in just the right way to allow for a blockage by creosote. This can happen to anyone if the factors are right.
