Getting a Chimney Swept advice please ?

[54isanopendoor]

Victorian house & have lived here 16 years.

Put wooden board over open fireplace when moved in as freezing cold.
(tried one fire, but it blew black smoke out of fireplace in room directly above...
in hindsight it was stupid not to have the chimney swept first!)

Now want to install a log burner.
Have a '4/6m' wait around here.
So, thinking of opening up chimney & getting swept to see if prob in room above still as, if not, can have open fires over winter till log burner date due.

Does this sound a sensible plan? (sweep quote is £55)

Booking a reputable person to come and check the chimney is a good idea as they can then advise you on what is safe.
for what it’s worth we had our chimneys swept before installation of the flue for our log burner and the guy was clear that a flue was highly recommended due to the likelihood of smoke escaping through the old chimney which was a potential hazard.

Is the flue lined?

I think you need a proper chimney inspection, not just a chimney sweep. Someone with a camera who knows what they are doing.

Open fires are inefficient compared to stoves. Check local requirements for smokeless fuel - you may have to burn smokeless coal only. We managed to get a stove fitted whilst we had scaffolding up for chimney and roof work.

If you don't use the open fire, stick a chimney balloon in the opening to stop draughts.

@Treesuphooray yes getting a proper sweep in seems a good idea to me

(also just discovered that exH let the house insurance lapse - getting that sorted first too ;)

@vinoandbrie I highly doubt it. I assume it would need a liner if a woodburner went in so I thought my £55 would not be wasted in any case as I expect it would need swept first before a liner is fitted? The house had patchy maintenance before us so the chimney has probably not been swept for 20yrs+

@WeAreTheHeroes yes, but I'd have to save up for that so no chance this year.
@TheProvincialLady hmm I might yes. Would I need a sweep first (neighbour has recommended one used by a local stove installer so hopefully okay for this)

It’s tricky, because it’s a shame to spend £55 if it’s unlined and so you can’t use it (or it wouldn’t be recommended to use it).

When we had the log burners put in, we didn’t get a chimney sweep first, the installation people did all the necessary from start to finish and then we’ve had the chimneys swept every 12 months thereafter.

Definitely get it swept, but also ask if they can advise on it's efficiency/pull of smoke up the flue. When woodburners smoke, a lot of times it's because the woodburner itself is dirty/dusty and it's all that accumulated stuff on the outside and inside burning off. That's something you can clean easily yourself. Also, you'd need to check how drafty your house is and if air is actually pulling up rather than out into the room. We once lived in an old house that was so drafty that we couldn't use the woodburner because the pressure of the airflow basically went the wrong way.

I was unclear - due to the inefficiency of open fires, it's probably more economical to stop draughts getting down the chimney and heat the room by another more efficient means.

We were lucky that the fact we already had scaffolding up made the job of installing our stove easier for the fitters as the chimney is very tall. I think we'd still be waiting if it weren't for that.

Ok, thanks all very useful info.
Need to do something as I'm cold tonight.
It's 9 degrees where I am & my boiler has an error code & won't work (it started making horrible noises earlier). Upon checking with exH (who walked out last year) not only has the house insurance lapsed but even if it hadn't the 'annual service of boiler' which is part of it hasn't been done. exH told me he'd used someone local each year but it turns out he 'can't find any recepits or paperwork'. So, he didn't do it & I now have a 12 yr old boiler to get repaired. Argh.

This. I had the chimney swept, and burnt dry logs in a basket for the first three months, before the people came to line the flue and put in the log burner.

PP are correct, it isn't as efficient but it warmed the sitting room and the chimney breast wall of the bedroom above, so useful, giving us two inhabitable rooms when the boiler broke down in the snow, later that year.

well my open fire must be rare as it has a fantastic draw and heats the 16ft lounge very well dont have the rad on in therel and has no liner but i do get it swept by a decent sweep yearly and burn good quality wood/coal and yes make sure you have insurance and the sweep should give you a certificate

i did look to get a burner but would of taken years and years to break even so am keeping my open fire

good luck op

£55 sounds good price for a sweep, and it's going to have to be done at some point anyway.

We have an open fire too, it is fantastic, but it has been fitted with a Jetmaster fireplace, so it recycles the heat in the room very efficiently, and vents can be easily adjusted to control the fire.

Definitely get it swept, you can ask for someone who uses a camera to check the liner/no liner status of your chimney, you'll need it lined anyway when it comes to your burner

By the time you're booked in for your burner installation you'll have got good value out of a bit of prep work and enjoyed some fires in the meantime.. I dont know why people are focusing on the fact that open fires are not as efficient, OP is doing this as a stop gap until she has something different, for a few months at the most.