Preparing for a Baby

« Back to Home

Winter Approaching? Two Powerful Reasons To Have Your Chimney Inspected

Posted on

As the seasons merge into one another, you might look around your house and decide that it's time to do a little maintenance. Nearly everyone is familiar with the term, "Spring Cleaning," which signifies a time during which people take special pains to go into all of those hard-to-reach nooks and corners of their homes to extract the dirt and make everything nice and tidy just in time for the hot days of summer.

Winter deserves the same kind of care, and one of the first places to begin is with the chimney. Your chimney should be inspected before winter makes its debut for the following reasons:

1. You Never Know What Else Has Made Your House Their Home

Just as you probably love your house and enjoy relaxing in it each day, there could also be a few guests inside that you don't know about. The seasons that pass before winter comes back around leave plenty of time for some other visitors to decide that they want to make a permanent residence out of your chimney.

If your chimney is enclosed in glass, or you close the flue or grate after the winter winds stop blowing, you may not find out that there are animals in your chimney until you decide to light the first log of the season. If you're doing this on a romantic evening, you can just imagine how this might throw a monkey wrench into your plans.

A good chimney inspection will uncover these critters, and the technician can ferret them out and send them on their way. Remember that this doesn't just apply to animals because there could be a load of debris in your chimney that you don't want clogging things up and sending unnecessary smoke back into your house.

2. Dirty Chimneys Pose A Fire Hazard

Keeping your family safe is another big reason why you always want to have your chimney cleaned and inspected just before winter. The creosote that builds up on the walls of your chimney is often quite flammable, and if you let it go year after year without being cleared away, it could eventually result in a disastrous fire that destroys your home.

When you look at chimney inspection as an essential activity, your entire household is sure to thank you for it. The air will be much clearer when you have the fireplace going, and you'll know beyond a doubt that your chimney is safe for use.

If you suspect your chimney is in need of repair, contact a company such as G.H. Erickson & Son for more information.