That one customer who taught me about creosote buildup

I had this older lady in Oak Park call me out last winter because her fireplace was smoking back into the living room. I figured it was just a blockage from a bird nest or something. But when I got up on the roof and ran my brush down, I pulled out this thick, shiny layer of creosote that looked almost like tar. She came out and stood there watching me work, and she starts telling me how she's been burning green firewood for the last two months because her kid dropped off a truckload of unseasoned logs. I had to explain to her that wet wood creates that nasty glaze that can cause chimney fires. She actually thanked me and asked me to show her what seasoned wood looks like. Has anyone else run into customers who just don't know about the kind of wood they're burning?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_harper5d ago

You ever try to tell someone their wood's too green and they look at you like you're speaking another language? I had a guy last fall who bragged about getting a "steal" on a truckload of freshly cut oak. Three months later he calls me panicked because his chimney is smoking like a coal plant. I showed him the difference between seasoned and green wood right there in his driveway, split one of his logs in half and it was still dripping water. He finally got it when I told him he was basically burning money and creating a fire hazard at the same time.

derekwalker5d ago

Man I learned that lesson the hard way myself. Started testing moisture content with a cheap meter before I even buy wood now, anything over 20 percent and I walk away. Saves me a ton of headaches and keeps my chimney clean.