Goodrich-Despite popular movie portrayals of chimney sweeps, Rob Bryant will not perform a carefully choreographed dance number while atop your home.
The work he does, however, might save your home, or even, your life.
Bryant, 39, owns and operates Clean Sweep Chimney Service with his wife, Marcelle, in the village.
A full time firefighter and paramedic in West Bloomfield Township, Bryant learned the craft while apprenticing under Don Giles of Coach Light Chimney Sweep Company in Macomb.
Because of his work as a firefighter, Bryant says he understands all too well the danger of a chimney fire.
‘Being a fireman, I’ve seen chimney fires burn houses down,? said Bryant.
The danger comes from a by-product of combustion called creosote.
Over time the creosote builds up in the chimney, hardening as it cools, explains Bryant. When a fire is ignited beneath the creosote, however, it softens to a tar-like consistency that is flammable in nature.
‘You’ll know it if it happens,? says Bryant. ‘People will say ‘it sounds like someone was driving a train in my chimney.?
It’s a description with which Atlas Township Fire Chief Fred Forys says he’s familiar.
‘They sound just like a train going by,? said Forys. ‘It’ll just roar.?
Forys estimates the ATFD responded to three chimney fire last year.
The real danger of a chimney fire, explains Forys, is it might crack the fireplace and escape into the walls.
Forys points out that while creosote is a common culprit of chimney fires, sometimes other debris such as animals having nested in chimneys, might also start a fire.
And while various factors’the wood burned and frequency of use, for example? can affect creosote levels, Bryant says everyone with a wood burning fireplace should have their chimney inspected about once a year.
Bryant says both quality of service and prices vary within the profession, but he charges about $100 to clean a chimney.
For Bryant, cleaning begins with an inspection to determine if a full sweep is even necessary.
If the chimney is in need of sweeping, Bryant will then put down drop cloths and install a soot vacuum, to catch any debris loosened in the process.
The actual ‘sweeping? part of being a chimney sweep comes into play when Bryant uses long metal brushes on the inside of the chimney to scrape of any obstructions, including creosote.
Bryant then removes the damper of the chimney and digs out any debris before reinstalling the damper and cleaning out the firebox area.
The final step in the process is just replacing the grate, at which point Bryant’s work is done.
Either prior to or following a sweep Bryant likes to educate new customers about potentially hazardous fireplace practices.
‘I feel that’s part of my job too,? says Bryant, ‘to educate.?
Bryant says the first three things he tells customers are:
1. Know the location of your fire extinguishers.
2. Make sure smoke detectors are working and
3. Get a carbon monoxide detector.
Those three things, says Bryant, are key elements of safety.
Clean Sweep Chimney Service (248) 627-8055.