chimney sweeping

[danielf]

Evening all.

We have a gas fire in the front room (as well as GCH, so the fire doesn't get used much), and I noticed today that a fair bit of soot has fallen from the chimney, which kind of suggests the chimney needs sweeping. Looking around on the web, I notice that it is recommended to have the chimney swept every 3 years when using a gas fire, in order to prevent Carbon Monoxide trouble. Is this correct?

Also, I imagine this means I will need to get a CORGI bloke in to disconnect the gas fire, then have the chimney sweeped, and then get the CORGI bloke back in to reconnect the gas fire? I've not had gas fires much so I'm a bit of a in this area. Any advice is appreciated

[Wicked_and_Crazy]

it should be lined so shouldnt soot up. If you get a Corgi guy around they will put a smoke bomb up it, you'll soon find out if its safe or not.

[Matt D]

My knowledge of chimneys extends only to what I've seen in "Mary Poppins".


But as for the gas fire... yep, as a gas appliance it can only be disconnected / reconnected etc. etc. by a CORGI professional.

[Had fun with CORGI & the HSE a couple of years ago after my ex-landlord fitted a new gas boiler himself, despite not being a CORGI professional...]

[danielf]

Originally Posted by Wicked_and_Crazy

it should be lined so shouldnt soot up. If you get a Corgi guy around they will put a smoke bomb up it, you'll soon find out if its safe or not.

Cheers. I need to have the central heating and gas fire serviced anyway, so presumably it's best to say I want this checked and take it from there?

[Rob]

You won't necessarily need the gas fire to be disconnected if it's one of those real flame type jobs. It should be possible for the chimney sweep to properly cover it over to stop the soot falling into it while they clean. Any other gas fire probably needs disconnection to allow sweeping.

However once the flue has been swept you should then get the appliance (and thus the flue) checked to see it is burning properly and the gasses are being correctly expelled.

All gas appliances should be checked at least annually (essential requirement if your property is let rather than owner occupied), for Gas Safety, i.e. that the flue gasses are being properly expelled. It is an offence for anyone who is not CORGI to interfere with (connect, service, disconnect) a gas appliance.

[Matt D]

btw, do you rent, or own? If you rent, the landlord is legally required to ensure that all gas appliances & fittings & flues etc. have an annual safety check & a Landlord's Gas Safety Certificate must be issued to you each time.

[Rob]

Frequently ignored, most older properties that had proper coal / wood burning fireplaces, that have since had a gas fire fitted will not have a good quality flue. Often the older flues are not robustly lined, or were simply parged (a render interior) and this deteriorates over time. A flexible liner is often necessary to achieve good exhaust of flue gasses.

[danielf]

Originally Posted by Matt D

btw, do you rent, or own? If you rent, the landlord is legally required to ensure that all gas appliances & fittings etc. have an annual safety check & a Landlord's Gas Safety Certificate issued must be issued to you each time.

It's owned. By the bank, mostly, but we're working on that

---------- Post added at 23:45 ---------- Previous post was at 23:43 ----------

Originally Posted by Rob

Frequently ignored, most older properties that had proper coal / wood burning fireplaces, that have since had a gas fire fitted will not have a good quality flue. Often the older flues are not robustly lined, or were simply parged (a render interior) and this deteriorates over time. A flexible liner is often necessary to achieve good exhaust of flue gasses.

It's an Edwardian property. I'm not quite sure where that puts me. Probably in the 'older' category. We bought the place less than a year ago. It's probably wise to have this checked properly? Will the CORGI bloke be able to do this?

[Matt D]

If it's anything to do with gas, then the CORGI bloke should do it (& is the only person who can).


CORGI website:

http://www.trustcorgi.com


Loads of info there, plus also a postcode based "CORGI installer" search function.

[Rob]

Yep I'd put Edwardian in the Older category. If you bought the place a year ago, and didn't get a service certificate when you acquired the property, and haven't had the fire serviced since you've been there, I wouldn't be using it until I'd had the safety test / service carried out. A Corgi bod can check if it's working OK for now, but things can subsequently change, hence the recommendation for an annual check.

It's often impossible to see inside the flue other than the throat of the fireplace, but if there is debris falling into the fire there is a good chance the flue interior is nearing end of life. If that affects and hinders a proper draught, and there is inadequate fresh air entry to the room (no air bricks), generally needed for fires of rating over 7kW input (and some lesser appliances), the exhaust could be unsafe.

[danielf]

Cheers all. As I said, I am getting a CORGI bod in to service the GCH/gas fire anyway, so I'll see what he says

[soup dragon]

i have a 7 yr old who you could send up the chimney, gor blimey g'vner

[RUSTY]

on 1800`s early 1900`s it is often possible to see all the way from the fire opening to the `pot as the chimneys often did not have the later 60 degree bend. how do I know..fitted many a coal fireplace and swept many chimneys.

[Osem]

Carbon monoxide detectors are relatively cheap these days so anyone in any doubt about their gas appliances should get a couple. Periodic inspections are of course fine but they won't necessarily reveal in good time faults or indeed things like the new squirrel's nest which blocked the chimney serving our main gas fire. This could so easily have had serious consequences for us had our detector not very quickly alerted us to the problem.

Incidentally I bought some rods from the local DIY and did the removal job myself - no easy task when the nest is almost the size of a football, extremely dense and wedged in tight!!