Wood burning stoves and chimney sweep prices

Kat_Lowell

Is there any video or something to see if I'm sweeping properly? As someone said before it can't be just a flick of the brush...?

muckybutt

Kat_Lowell wrote: »

Is there any video or something to see if I'm sweeping properly? As someone said before it can't be just a flick of the brush...?

There a lot more to sweeping than just flicking the brush up and down Kat - there are many videos on Youtube that give you an idea - I cant say they are right or wrong as no two chimney jobs are ever the same.

Depending on what you have be it a stove or an open fire will depend on how regular it needs sweeping - has it got a liner ? again will alter the way its swept from that or a normal chimney etc, so as you can see plenty of variables.

If you want to sweep and be sure its been done right then get it swept professionally once a year and you do it in between sweeps.

beetwaste

SEE wrote: »

BLIMEY! Sweeps are about £70 here!!!!!

That's pricey. They are quite busy here, mind - most houses in t'rural Yorkshire have a chimney.

POPPYOSCAR

suki1964 wrote: »

Agreed

But nowhere does it say that a registered sweep has to sweep the chimney, you are well within your rights sweeping your own

As ours is a twin wall flue going straight up, and having bought the correct brush head for our rods, for us it's a simple yearly task

I'm not advocating that we all sweep our own chimneys, I'm just saying that this is an urban myth trotted out time and again, there is no truth to it

Even the sweeps on this board agree

No one is saying that it is a written requirement by the insurance company that you must have your chimney swept by a registered sweep.

All I am saying is that for the sake of the £45 a year that it costs us it is simply not worth the bother of doing it yourself and it gives us the peace of mind that should we ever have the misfortune to have a fire caused by the chimney the insurance company have one less excuse to not pay out by saying it was not maintained as it should have been.

If you had to go to court against an insurance company and you had paperwork to show that the chimney had been swept this would hold much more credence than simply saying you had done it yourself.

POPPYOSCAR

[QUOTE=suki1964;58768837]Cano you post the names of these companies please?

This is something that crops up now and then on here yet no one so far has posted where in any policy it says you have to inform if you are using an open fire or stove, or where it says you have to have it swept by a sweep

It appears to me, and others, one of those urban myths[/QUOTE]



What all the names of companies that state you must keep your home in a good state of repair?


The following is quoted from HETAS

"And as Lawson Wight points out, "You should check the small print in your insurance policy, especially for wording such as "adequate maintenance"." He also mentioned that "in future, legislation is on the cards, that sweeps will need to be trained and accredited to the upcoming common standard, in the same way as electricians have had to comply in the past."

Alun Williams of HETAS quotes: "Householders should contact insurance organisations for their stance on having a valid chimney sweeping certificate. There is no current legal requirement but many insurance organisations will have something written into their contracts. For householders it is good practice to have their chimney maintained and swept on a regular basis, this can be dependent upon how often the system is used and what fuel is being used. In addition to chimney maintenance, quality fuel is another key factor in the prevention of chimney fires. HETAS operates a Quality Assured Fuel scheme for logs, pellets, chips and briquettes and also run an approval for solid mineral fuels such as coal. Many consumers are using poor quality fuel that can lead to the poor performance of their system and lead to chimney fires at a later date. (http://www.hetas.co.uk//fuel-quality)

HETAS is a not for profit organisation promoting the safe and effective use of solid fuels, biomass and related technologies.

At the end of the day, the important thing is to reduce the chance of a chimney fire in the first place. Never mind the inconvenience of having a chimney fire and arguing it out with your insurance company, the dangers to life and limb should of course be the first thing to be taken into consideration. We've become unused to having a living fire in our homes of late, with the advent of central heating and the like, much of the old knowledge about how to use them safely will need to be relearned through experience and simply asking questions in the right places. And you never know if the insurance company will try to wriggle out of paying your claim, due to 'inadequate maintenance' or some other clause in the small print, so why give them the opportunity?"

Mister_G

Good advice, and for £40-50 is it really that expensive compared with an insurance claim and the peace of mind.

suki1964

POPPYOSCAR wrote: »

What all the names of companies that state you must keep your home in a good state of repair?


The following is quoted from HETAS

"And as Lawson Wight points out, "You should check the small print in your insurance policy, especially for wording such as "adequate maintenance"." He also mentioned that "in future, legislation is on the cards, that sweeps will need to be trained and accredited to the upcoming common standard, in the same way as electricians have had to comply in the past."

Alun Williams of HETAS quotes: "Householders should contact insurance organisations for their stance on having a valid chimney sweeping certificate. There is no current legal requirement but many insurance organisations will have something written into their contracts. For householders it is good practice to have their chimney maintained and swept on a regular basis, this can be dependent upon how often the system is used and what fuel is being used. In addition to chimney maintenance, quality fuel is another key factor in the prevention of chimney fires. HETAS operates a Quality Assured Fuel scheme for logs, pellets, chips and briquettes and also run an approval for solid mineral fuels such as coal. Many consumers are using poor quality fuel that can lead to the poor performance of their system and lead to chimney fires at a later date. (http://www.hetas.co.uk//fuel-quality)

HETAS is a not for profit organisation promoting the safe and effective use of solid fuels, biomass and related technologies.

At the end of the day, the important thing is to reduce the chance of a chimney fire in the first place. Never mind the inconvenience of having a chimney fire and arguing it out with your insurance company, the dangers to life and limb should of course be the first thing to be taken into consideration. We've become unused to having a living fire in our homes of late, with the advent of central heating and the like, much of the old knowledge about how to use them safely will need to be relearned through experience and simply asking questions in the right places. And you never know if the insurance company will try to wriggle out of paying your claim, due to 'inadequate maintenance' or some other clause in the small print, so why give them the opportunity?"

POPPYOSCAR wrote: »

As I understand it some Insurance companies will not pay out for chimney fires if they have not been swept by a professional chimney sweep(Our sweep gives us a certificate).

I would rather not have the bother of getting all the necessary equipment and also have the peace of mind that in the event of a chimney fire the insurance company would not have an excuse to not pay out.

erm you quoted that is was an insurance acquirement , not myself

Sweeps have also said on this tread its an urban myth

theres also many of us who have very little to say that's good about Hetas

but hey, you want to spout bull - you go ahead. No skin of my nose


You will also find I don't post telling other people how to run their lives, just post the facts

A._Badger

POPPYOSCAR wrote: »

What all the names of companies that state you must keep your home in a good state of repair?


The following is quoted from HETAS

I wouldn't take anything HETAS said with less than sack of salt. It is a trade association - not a charity.

This 'not for profit' smokescreen is being widely used these days to imply things that aren't quite what they appear. HETAS employees make money and it serves its members' interests. That there are no shareholder dividends is beside the point.

It is simple common sense to keep a chimney swept and in good order. It is clearly true that failure to do so would quite probably invalidate an insurance claim in the event of a fire. My experience of insurance companies is that all the pieces of paper in the world are unlikely to stop them trying to wriggle if they think they can get away with it. Having a certificate may help but it is not mandatory as things stand, unless you have a legal agreement with an insurance company saying that it is.

suki1964

Mister_G wrote: »

Good advice, and for £40-50 is it really that expensive compared with an insurance claim and the peace of mind.

|Can you please post the bit in your policy that says you have to be swept yearly ( or even three times if burning wood) so as we know who to avoid


So far there's not one of us that can show that and even the sweeps are saying its rubbish

Mister_G

suki1964 wrote: »

|Can you please post the bit in your policy that says you have to be swept yearly ( or even three times if burning wood) so as we know who to avoid


So far there's not one of us that can show that and even the sweeps are saying its rubbish

I'm not referring to insurance policies, merely that, as other posters have said, it is common sense to sweep your chimney regularly as a build up of soot and tar is the main cause of chimney fires.

Personally, I feel happier letting a chimney sweep do it.