Saw a 200-year-old chimney in Charleston with zero creosote buildup

Tbh I was down in Charleston last month checking out some historic homes and noticed this one chimney from like 1820. The homeowner said they've never had it swept and it's barely got any soot inside, must be the super dry wood they burn down there. Anyone else run into old chimneys that are cleaner than modern ones?

2 comments

2 Comments

wood.zara26d ago

Have you checked the type of wood they're burning? I've seen this before with old chimneys in the South, and it usually comes down to using super dry hardwoods like oak or hickory that burn really hot and clean. If you're burning green or wet wood, that's when you get the nasty creosote buildup. Also, older chimneys were built with wider flues sometimes, and that extra air flow can help keep things from sticking as much. But I'd still be careful assuming it's totally clean, sometimes you can't see the buildup around corners or up higher without a proper camera scope.

davis.mia23d ago

Wait, wider flues actually help with that? I always thought that would make it worse or something. @wood.zara I'm genuinely surprised, like that almost sounds backwards to what I've been told.