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uui mt up lup uinmic) sweep would rather hand out safety hints to home owners than tell funny stories about his experiences on the job. Noting that damage from chimney fires totaled $23 million in 1975, Issac suggested that jacketed wood stoves be located at least 18 inches away from anything flamable and unjacketed stoves 36 inches distant from burnable substances. Stove pipes, he said, need to be cleaned two or three times during the season and chimneys for fire places and stoves cleaned after burning two to three cords of wood.
Creosote buildup, the chief cause of chimney fires, is dependent on the type of wood burned, the efficiency of the stove and the frequency of burning, according to Watts. He emphasized that these variables make it difficult to lay down hard and fast rules on how often a chimney needs cleaning. He noted that he’d seen eight inch flues in new stoves clog up completely within two months while other chimneys could go for a whole season or longer without dangerous creosote build up.
Watts explained that creosote comes from gases in wood that condense as a solid in chimney flues. Wet wood contains more of the gaseous substance, he said, adding that even dry, aged wood has 30 per cent moisture. "The more efficient the stove, the more creosote condensation you get,” he added.
A chimney fire erupts when "a rip roaring big blaze, hot enough to ignite the creosote, gets going," Watts continued. Once the creosote catches, it creates pressure caused by more air being sucked in to feed the flames than can escape through the top of the
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