PSA/FYI for Wood burner owners « Singletrack Forum

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PSA/FYI for Wood burner owners

38 posts & 15 voices | Started 7 months ago by Stoner | Latest reply from xcgb

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ecofan

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Stoner - Member

Excellent £45 quid spent. 6 rods and a brush. About the same price as getting a chimney sweep in.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/120523065688
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/120523062249

Had them for a while, only just got round to sweeping my two flues today for their first clean since last season. Only takes 10 minutes or so each flue of actual brushing, but you spend a fair bit longer getting access, setting up and hoovering up and trying not to spill soot everywhere. Doddle though.

But I imagine only easy if you have a new flue or liner. WOuldnt wnat to have to do an old un-lined chimney.

Posted 7 months ago #
iDave - Member

Surely there must be some poor children left in the countryside?

Posted 7 months ago #
alfabus - Member

coincidentally i saw these in the screwfix catalogue yesterday:

Chimney brush
Rod set

£39.98

Dave

Posted 7 months ago #
Stoner - Member

Surely there must be some poor children left in the countryside

eaten them all. there's a recession on you know.

Posted 7 months ago #
Stoner - Member

alfabus - dont forget the brush is for chimneys - larger than flues. The nylon one I link to is the right diameter for a 5" flue bore.

Posted 7 months ago #
alfabus - Member

ah yes... sorry, my chimneys are unlined

Posted 7 months ago #
Stoner - Member

Just lit the stove for the first time this season.

R6Music, Pinot Noir, fire.
Primordial bliss

Posted 7 months ago #
sharkbait - Member

Are the rods the same as drain rods? I fitted a soot door to the outside of our stove chimney so I should be able to clean it myself - will give it a go if the rods I've already got are useable.

Posted 7 months ago #
Stoner - Member

no idea. Theyre flexible plastic/nylon.
The rod is about 15mm in diameter and the brass threads about the same male diameter. Its not a fine thread.

Posted 7 months ago #
andyl - Member

Toolstation: http://www.toolstation.com/shop/Hand+Tools/Drain+Rods/d10/sd2916

Posted 7 months ago #
JEngledow - Member

How about one of these I got one a few years ago (when it was cheaper) for our chimney and it's certainly up to the job for us.

Posted 7 months ago #
geoffj - Member

Stoner are them the *really* flexible ones that'll do 90 degree bends?
I keep meaning to get a set. Last time I looked they were £80 ish.

Posted 7 months ago #
Stoner - Member

it'll do 90 degree with a 400mmish radius.

you shouldnt really have any 90deg 5" radius bends in your flue geoff....

Posted 7 months ago #
geoffj - Member

you shouldnt really have any 90deg 5" radius bends in your flue geoff....

The flue comes out of the back of the stove - 150mm straight and then 90 degree up.

Posted 7 months ago #
Stoner - Member

I just disconnected the adaptor from the back of my stove and dropped off the lowest unsupported flue pipe to make it really easy.

couple of bolts.

Posted 7 months ago #
geoffj - Member

Mines recessed and plumbed in. Bit of a bugger to pull out to do that.
It'll be worth ordering 1 of the rods to try anyway.

Posted 7 months ago #
Smudger666 - Member

Stoner

nice work with the internal woodpile!

Posted 7 months ago #
hamishthecat - Member

Did ours yesterday. Ended up swearing I'll pay someone next year. I never do though.

Think I might try one of those nylon brushes - mine's a hard steel brush and it's a right pain to use and I suspect is a bit tough on the flue liner.

Posted 7 months ago #
Stoner - Member

you still need to push the nylon brush through to the end before inverting. You can invert it mid flue, but its a bit of a heave.

Posted 7 months ago #
timbur - Member

Mmm, tempted to try on ours at home.
I've got some drain rods so just need a flue head....

....what could possibly go wrong.

(any tips Stoner???)

Posted 7 months ago #
Stoner - Member

really, it was so stupidly easy I cant understand why I didnt do it earlier.

Getting access can be a head scratcher (see geoff's problem), but it's not a "sooty" job in the sense of clouds of dust, more a gritty, gravelly, falling dirt. It hits the deck and stays there, doesnt spill around the room. Doesnt stain stone tiles or skirting or painted walls.

Push through until youre nearly there before just inching the last part until the brush clears the end of the flue, because you dont want to knock off the rain cap.

Posted 7 months ago #
timbur - Member

And turn anti clockwise so I'm told to stop it undoing and getting wedged in the flue????

Posted 7 months ago #
Stoner - Member

turn CLOCKwise! the thread direction. If you turn anticlockwise, you'll leave your brush and half your rods up the chimney

Posted 7 months ago #
jp-t853 - Member

You can get sweeping sets for £26 on Amazon. I got some in B&Q years ago but I generally pay the chimney sweep £15 once a year. The house stays clean when they do it, I generally drop something trying to get out of the front door.

Posted 7 months ago #
bedmaker - Member

Brushing is for wimps - a good roaring soot fire every few years will sort your flue out

Did some adjustments to my own stove a few days ago as it was drawing way too hard. It's working much more nicely now. Getting some lovely secondary burning which is quite addictive to watch.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YX2zmmwPUo

Posted 7 months ago #
Stoner - Member

niceeeeee.

secondary burn is the hypnoflame isnt it

how did you:

Did some adjustments to my own stove a few days ago as it was drawing way too hard

Mine drew hard tonight but he wind wasn't form the normal direction.

Posted 7 months ago #
flap_jack - Member

love the moka pot on the stove.

Posted 7 months ago #
bedmaker - Member

I:

Stuffed up the bottom vents with fire rope as I burn only wood and they never shut tight due to crappy design/tolerances.

Put a new fire rope round the glass, much thicker and softer than the original. Again, due to fairly poor build quality the door is not quite straight and always leaked a bit round the glass seal with the thinner rope in place.

Partially blocked the top air .

All simple stuff but has totally transformed the operation of the stove. Don't know why I didn't do it ages ago tbh.
It is now much more controllable.

Posted 7 months ago #
Stoner - Member

cheers bedmaker - Ill keep an eye out for overventing then.

Posted 7 months ago #
ScottChegg - Member

nice work with the internal woodpile!

Do you mean the spider hotel?

Posted 7 months ago #
Stoner - Member

to keep the kids occupied last xmas I gave them some pens and said I wanted faces drawn on each & every log end

Posted 7 months ago #
bedmaker - Member

It's important to keep the spiders in there to eat all the other little horrors which come in on the logs

Posted 7 months ago #
xcgb - Member

Bedmaker

I assume thats your stove on the youtube clip

Is the ecofan worth the £90 cost?, I have been wavering over one for a while

Ta

Posted 7 months ago #
bedmaker - Member

The fan isn't worth it on my sstove as it is a convector with a double skinned top so doesn't get really hot. I thought I'd try it out anyway as I got it trade and can punt it on easily enough.

If you have a radiant stove though, I hear nothing but good things about them and everyone I know who has got one would recommend it.

Posted 7 months ago #
xcgb - Member

punt it on easily enough

Cough - fancy punting it my way? I'm sure we can do a deal!

Although I only have a Hunter Hawk 4 so would need to check it fits on top OK

Posted 7 months ago #