CLOGGED WOODSTOVE CHIMNEY
One of the skills that I acquired while living in the Yukon, was that of learning the finer points of woodstove operation. This came in handy last week upon my arrival at my current house/pet sit. It seemed rather obvious to me right from the get go, that the air wasn't able to go up the chimney. Not only was this a major inconvenience which caused copious amounts of smoke to flow out into the room, it was also a potential fire hazard. Having been through the start of a chimney fire once before in Dawson City, I decided that the first order of business was to unclog the stack. This was accomplished with the assistance of the owner, who lives here on the property. (I am house sitting for his renters.)
First, I had to let the fire go out, which made for a chilly night and the following morning. I had enough layers of clothing to stay comfortable, but I was getting unhappy looks from the resident bonehead named Leeloo, and especially from the resident furball named Trinity. They really couldn't understand what I was up to.
Next on my to do list was to clean out all of the ash from the stove, and then remove a couple bricks inside the stove so that I could have a look up the stack. As the attached photo clearly shows, the chimney was well and truly plugged.
Dave, the owner arrived as scheduled with multiple ladders to access the the roof, as well as the brush to clean the chimney. It was so plugged up that he had difficulty pushing the brush down the stack. Persistence paid off, and before long there was a huge pile of creosote down in the stove. Job done.
I thanked him for his help, and he thanked me for bringing this to his attention. It would have been a real bummer to burn the house down, and I doubt if I would have gotten a good referral, if I had survived.
Now anxious to get a fire lit, and with the resident critters watching on in anticipation of a warm house, I built a pile of kindling in the stove, and then lit a match. Whoosh!!! As soon as the wood caught fire, I knew we had had a successful operation
Leeloo, Trinity, and the house sitter could now relax and enjoy the pleasant warmth that now emanated from the fire.
happy, accepting and grateful,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
No comments:
Post a Comment