Homeowner Guide · DeKalb, IL
Chimney Maintenance Tips
What you can do between professional visits to burn safely and keep your chimney in good shape — plus the jobs that are worth leaving to a pro.
A yearly professional sweep and inspection is the foundation of chimney safety, but there’s plenty a DeKalb-area homeowner can do between visits to burn cleaner and catch problems early. Here’s our practical, no-nonsense guide.
Burn only seasoned, dry wood
Wet or unseasoned wood burns cool and smoky, which lays down creosote far faster. Season firewood at least six months to a year, split and stacked off the ground under cover. Hardwoods like oak and hickory burn longer and cleaner than soft, resinous woods. Dry wood is the single biggest thing you control.
Build hotter, cleaner fires
Small, hot fires produce less creosote than large, smoldering ones. Give the fire enough air to burn briskly rather than damping it down to a slow smoke. A hot flue drafts better and stays cleaner.
Watch for warning signs
Between sweeps, keep an eye (and nose) out for: a strong campfire or tar smell when the fireplace isn’t in use, smoke spilling into the room, black soot flakes building up, white staining on the exterior brick, or a damper that’s hard to open. Any of these is worth a call.
Keep the area safe
Maintain a clear, non-combustible hearth in front of the fireplace, use a sturdy screen or glass doors, and never leave a fire unattended. Let ashes cool fully and store them in a metal container outside, away from the house — buried embers can stay hot for days.
Test your alarms
Put a working smoke alarm and a carbon-monoxide alarm on every level of the home, and test them monthly. A CO alarm is especially important with any fuel-burning appliance — it’s the backstop that catches a venting problem you can’t see or smell.
Leave these to a professional
Some jobs aren’t DIY. Climbing on the roof, sweeping the full flue, camera inspections, any masonry or crown repair, relining, and especially anything involving a gas valve or gas line should be done by a trained technician. If you ever smell gas, leave and call us or your utility from outside.
When it’s time for your annual service, call (815) 449-4265 or send a request — we’ll handle the parts that shouldn’t be a homeowner’s job.
Leave the hard part to us
Talk to Chuck’s crew directly — 7 days a week, 7am to 9pm.