Worried about removing the fireplace smell this year? Once you’ve finished with scrubbing your home from top to bottom, you might have noticed a strange smell still coming from around your fireplace. It can be a strong or subtle odor that seems impossible to get rid of! Maybe you’ve tried to put some baking powder and vinegar in the fireplace, or double dosed the fireplace with cleaning liquids, yet the smell still won’t go away. Well, recently in the Chicagoland area, we’ve had plenty of humid weather. Humid weather doesn’t help with the fireplace smell. The more rain and water the chimney is exposed to, the more intense the smell becomes. So, is it possible to remove the fireplace smell, even with this humid weather?
A Simple Answer: Yes!
The answer is yes! It’s entirely possible to remove the fireplace smell year round, even in humid, hot weather. Creosote is a dark, oily substance that forms when wood is burned. It is made up of various chemicals that give it a distinct, pungent smell. When creosote builds up in a chimney or fireplace, it can create a strong, unpleasant odor that can stick around in your home. A simple douse down of cleaning liquids like bleach or vinegar and baking powder won’t do the trick, because creosote is built up in the smoke chamber & chimney flue, not the fireplace firebox. The chimney flue is a long exhaust flue that connects the fireplace to the outside, removing smoke and harmful chemicals from your home. Creosote naturally builds up over the course of winter time. The more you use your chimney, the more creosote builds up. As the air from the outside moves down through the flue, it pushes down the musty smell of creosote into your home.
Solving A Smelly Home
Luckily, our certified chimney technicians can help remove the creosote from the flue. Chimney professionals can check for pressure problems and cracks in the masonry around the flue, to make sure the creosote doesn’t get stuck in there. Did you know that if the creosote gets stuck in the cracks of your chimney, you might experience a chimney fire? Creosote does not only smell bad, but is also flammable. It’s really important to get your chimney checked by a certified technician.
Think You Can Spot All the Cracks?
Cleaning your chimney is a bit like playing Eye-Spy, but with a twist. Chimney technicians at Superior Chimney don’t recommend you to clean the creosote on your own. If you miss a crack, the smelly creosote will become a danger when you light up your fireplace again. Take caution when checking your chimney flue for creosote buildup. Or, simply call a certified chimney professional for an inspection.
At Superior Chimney, we specialize in identifying cracks in your chimney, malfunctioning parts, or further damages. With a proper chimney flue and fireplace sweep and inspection, the smell of creosote can fade away from your home, and leave you with how your home should be smelling; like cleaning liquid and air freshener!
Call us at Superior Chimney today for an appointment at 877-244-6349 for an inspection to find out how to be rid of fireplace smells.