Chimney Cleaners in Winston Salem, NC

John Budd Chimney Service (336-282-1150) did a great job rebuilding our chimney during renovations and providing ongoing maintenance. He's fairly priced and responds to calls quickly.

John Budd is great! (H) 282-1150 and (C) 317-9568

The list serve is on Yahoo.com

John Budd (c) 317-9568 (h) 282-1150 He is GREAT!!

This is some information about chimney swifts (the birds you are hearing) from the Humane Society's webpage: The rules regarding swifts in chimneys are simple. First, delay the annual cleaning until after young have left the nest. Although you may hear the noises of young birds as they beg for food, these are only temporary and should be tolerated. Ask your chimney sweep to come back in the fall if swifts are in occupancy earlier in the season. Professional sweeps should know that swifts are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, and anyone who knowingly destroys birds or nests that might contain eggs or young can be fined or penalized. Finally, chimneys lined with metal should always be capped, as birds that enter these can easily become trapped. Here is a link to the whole page about Chimney Swifts: http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/swifts/tips/solving_problems_with_chimney.html

We have used Andy Noble, owner of "Top to Bottom Chimney Services," in the past to clean and cap one of the chimneys in our 1920 s Ardmore home. Highly recommended. (336) 922-0906

Jeremiah, I immediately started singing that song in my head where Dick VanDyke is sweeping and dancing

How often do you get together with Dick Van Dyke and fellow chimney sweepers for a nice choreographed dance on the chimneys of London?

Why does my chimney sweep try to upsell me new brick work? I just want the $59 sweep. It only takes them 15 minutes

Have you ever found anything bigger than a dead bird?...

Great question! A couple of factors are/may be at work: 1. No chimney sweep is making money cleaning chimneys for $59 each. Consider the fact that they had to: advertise to get you to call or email them answer (or pay someone to answer) manage a schedule and the logistics of driving to people's homes and only then can they spend "15 minutes" at your home.

I am looking to have my chimney inspected and likely cleaned. We bought the house five yeara ago and haven't used the fire place. What are some things to look for in a sweep and what is the typical price for an inspection and sweep? I am always afraid ill get rioped off but I also don't expect to only pay 59.

Thanks for cleaning our chimneys. I run a wood stove throughout the winter and burn just under two cords of seasoned wood each year. I clean my own chimney once a year. It's a metalbestos chimney that runs through the interior of the house and extends about 6 feet above the roof. Should I clean it more than twice a year?

[Serious] - Do you do lots of weddings?

I just had a guy come in to clean our chimney and it turned out that there was a chimney fire at some point. He showed me the burnt... residue? maybe, that had been stuck up there. It was super light but came out in softball-sized clumps. Is that something you encounter often?

One night I came home and 30 small black birds had flown down my chimney into my house. Pest control places thought I was prank calling and hung up on me. Chimney sweep guy came and got the birds out and put a screen on top of my chimney. Thank you for your service!

Are you a member of the guild? Or are you a fly by night? Are you certified by CSIA?

Have you ever seen an actual cat on a hot tin roof?

OP has submitted proof to the mods.

My Nan always used to claim that they used pins in the children's feet to make them work faster when they were sent to clean chimneys. Do you still use poor, malnourished Victorian boys to do the work? I'll be sure to tell her.

It's my friends wedding today, wish him luck please.

What kind of skills/training do you need? How's the pay?

The people who sweep my chimney always tell me I need a new liner for the cost of $1800. Are they just trying to scam me? How can I tell if I need one?

What is the name of the thing you use to sweep chimneys? I have a tattoo of one and people always ask me what they are called. *The tattoo is Mary Poppins on the left arm with an umbrella and Bert on the right with a chimney sweepy thingy.*

I know in Germany and other European countries chimney sweeps are considered good luck, and some people will ask them to attend their weddings and the like. From your other comments, it sounds like you're in the US (or at least north America). Do you encounter people who think you're good luck? Has anyone asked you to attend their wedding because you're a sweep?

Do you ever get paid in gum?

What exactly happens to my chimney when I use the fireplace? What kind of chemicals are sticking around that neccessitates a sweep/inspection?

Any reason to worry about a strictly gas fireplace?

[Do these work?](http://www.cleanyourchimney.com/)

Chim chimeny chim chimeny chim chim sharooh

Did you know thay cancer was found to be the result of causative agents because chimney sweepers were developing testicular cancer.

Do you see yourself staying with this career? Do you have room to grow/get better/get more clients? How free to sell are you? Do you get told what to do, or do you run your business?

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I need to have my chimney swept, how do I go about finding a certified sweep?

I burn about 2 cords of wood a year, all Lodgepole pine that is cut dead and seasoned for 6 months or so. We have a wood burning fireplace insert with a blower. Any tips on anything? Haven't gotten a sweep yet, but only have lived here one winter season.

Is a sweeper really as happy as happy can be?

Will you sing for me?

Holy shit, you people exist?

Are there differences between gas fires and wood fires? My parents' house has a gas fireplace, and I don't think it's ever been swept or inspected in the twenty-one years they've lived there. They don't use it very often, though, maybe just once or twice a year.

can you tell if someone has been burning refuse?

I have heard that traditional chimney fires are an inefficient way to heat a home, is this true?

do you wake up everyday thanking God that the Decemberists have written a song about your profession?

What's the strangest thing you've found in a chimney (e.g. money, monkeys, whatever)?

What do you think about wood stove inserts for traditional brick fireplaces? I like the idea of actually using my fireplace to output some heat rather than just look nice, but the quotes I've gotten are really expensive (also, apparently my clay flue tiles also need to be replaced which adds to the cost). Do you recommend them?

When hiring a chimney sweep, what should I be on the lookout for? When we bought our house one inspector said we need to clean it, one said it wasn't really a big deal at the moment. Bonus question- What can I do to prolong the cleanliness of my chimney aside from burning woods like pine.

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[Serious] Does that creosote remover powder really work? I'm talking about the stuff that you add to a hot burning fire that is supposed to dry out and help remove creosote buildup in your chimney.

In the house I am renting, there is a nice brick fireplace with the chimney boarded up so it can't be used. The gas hot water heater and the gas furnace are both exhausted into the chimney. It looks like someone drilled a big hole in the brick chimney in the garage and stuck the exhaust pipes in. I'd love to be able to use the fireplace. Is there any chance if using the fireplace? I know you'd really have to see it all to say anything authoritatively, but look into your crystal ball and tell me a story.

My elderly mother called a chimney sweep who showed up in a slightly-shabby top hat and tails (he changed before he went to work). When he was done, he gave her a kiss on the cheek for luck. She was absolutely tickled. Do you ever do anything like that?

Do you like what you do?

doesnt everything clogged up in the chimneys hurt your lungs? i don't know that much about them, but i'd think you could get sick!!

Fellow Sweep here. Been doing it for almost 10 years. Love the job couldn't imagine doing anything else. Great idea posting an AMA. People need to learn more about their chimneys and safe burning practices. Best advice I can give someone, hire a certified chimney sweep. www.csia.org . There are a lot of untrustworthy people that call themselves sweeps. Find a pro and save yourself from getting screwed.

Is there a rule of thumb for how often to get a sweep? I've owned my home for three years and use the fireplace a few times a week in the winter. I've never had it swept. Is there a time bomb in my wall?

I'm not sure if you're still answering, but I'm asking anyway. My dad's friend does solid flue systems in older chimneys and also cleans and repairs chimneys. I'm from a slightly economically depressed area of the country and when he suggest people get new chimneys built to prevent issues they often decline. He has had an occasional client have a housefire OR chimney collapse happen. What do you do in those circumstances?

This may not be a question for you but hopefully you can answer. My house used to have a real fireplace (and a wood stove). The fireplace was converted to be a gas fireplace using propane. The wood stove was replaced with a propane burning gas stove. Is it possible to convert back, and how difficult would it be?

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How does Santa fit through chimneys that are too small for even average weighted people to fit through?

How shitty is your accent?

What is a chimney

I am a pooper scooper, ask me anything!

Have you ever bumped into Santa Claus?

How much longer do you think your profession can hold out?

Please don't think I'm being rude, But do you feel that the days of Chimney sweeps are numbered? I work in the UK fireplace industry and more and more HETAS engineers are popping up around the country.

/u/johnthephotographer asked: >Bonus question- What can I do to prolong the cleanliness of my chimney aside from burning woods like pine. Great question! * I would say the #1 thing is using properly-seasoned firewood. Hardwoods, softwoods or a mixture is fine, it just needs to be properly seasoned. * Next is having a properly-functioning chimney. If your chimney needs a cleaning, the problem can compound quickly as reduced airflow leads to increased rate of buildup in the chimney. * Moisture/leak issues are the mystery cause of many smoking fireplace/chimney problems. Chimneys with moisture problems tend to perform poorly, causing draft problems which then cause increased rate of buildup. * Creosote buildup is a result of less-than-perfect efficiency in burning wood. You'll always have some, but you can reduce it by being attentive to your fireplace. Burn small, hot fires, adding pieces of wood as needed, rather than dumping a huge pile in the fireplace and letting it smoulder. **edit** [serious]

John Budd. 336-282-1150

Acleanerchimney.com - they just came out and did mine last week. Really nice guys that did good work!

Cleaner Chimney!

A Cleaner Chimney http://www.acleanerchimney.com/

I used The Chimney Sweep and was very happy - ‭(336) 993-8999‬