Various websites suggesting 4 times a year if burning wood

We only use our woodburner for 6 months of the year but presumably that still means chimney should be swept twice a year?

If you’re new to log burners, then yes. If it isn’t bad when it’s done, you can extend the frequency.

It varies a lot depending on what you burn and how well.

One time every four years here… It’s our sole heating for most of the downstairs so its burning every winter evening and almost all the weekend.

The sweep I did some work for recently suggests twice a year minimum. I would think it would depend on the quality of he fuel and the chimney type. I have brushes so I do it in the spring, I burn good seasoned logs, and have a twin wall flue, I never get more than a dustpan of soot from the liner.

I did mine once after last winter, sweep said it was pretty clear (didn’t get out much soot) though perhaps the minor chimney fire had something to do with that! Puzzled that there is some creosote around the cowl now (and the rotating bit seems stuck) as it’s been burning much better so far this season.

Every couple of years.

Our sweep makes a recommendation each time he sweeps it, which so far has been once a year.

Every couple of years here, but the quality of your wood, and how you burn it makes a big difference

Once a year for ours (according to Chimney sweep), use it most nights for 5 months of the year.

As above, varies with fuel and burn habits.

Once a year for us burning anything dry, flat out mostly, especially at the end. Only occasionally shut it down low if we are popping out for a few hours.

If you burn wet crap slowly, 4 times a year is a good starting point.

If it is dry, the hard/soft wood argument is negligible, it’s just how often you have to get up to put more wood on.

I do mine at the end of the burning season(ie april or may up here in north east scotland)

And i do it again before the burning season – end of sept/start oct,

Easier to remove the soot soon after the last burn and i do it before i start again as birds often make nests in there and i want to ensure their nests dont catch fire without sticking a restrictive device on top to keep em out.

Nobody I know gets their chimney done 4 times a year!

It’s going to depend entirely on your circumstances. Best to get an experienced sweep round and ask their advice.

For reference our chimneys get done every 1-2 years.

Once a year here.

Never at my parents’ house. Fortunately the odd crow flies into the chimney and exits into the fire, which does a truly excellent job of cleaning it out about once a year. Personally reckon that “sweep it 4 times a year” is a myth put out by people who sweep chimneys.

Hasn’t caught fire* in 20 years so doubt it’ll start now.

* Apart from once when my brother connected an air line to the fire and turned it into a blast furnace.

I would also recommend checking if your house insurance company has any minimum recommendations – I’ve heard some insist on twice a year.

Haven’t swept my three for five years, cuz i am a hypocritical slack barsteward.

Direct Line have no stipulations re Chimney sweeping….

Once a year by law in this part of the world.

Ours gets swept whenever the Sweep does my folks (as they live nearby), every 6 months sounds right.

Although if you were only using it for the cold weather, probably worth having it done every summer.

Once a year as required by local regs. I burn a mix of wood that is very dry at full chat. Sweeping has never yielded more than a cereal bowl full of dry friable soot.

Is it different if you have a metal flue right to the top ?

Firefighter in a pretty rural area here……once a year for coal, twice a year for wood, as a rule.

If you have an older property with lots of ledges to catch the black sticky stuff, then maybe more…..and dependant on what you burn! There are new types of blocks, made from chipboard, with a lot of resin in, and they burn very hot….this has the potential to cause problems in older, less well maintained chimneys.