Almost 20 years of sweeping from the top down, then a 78 year old sweep in Buffalo told me to start at the smoke shelf

Victor Butler · 2026-10-14T12:10:03.900088+00:00

I figured that was backwards until I did a nasty 1920s brick flue in Rochester last month where the creosote was glazed solid, and going bottom up first knocked the heavy stuff loose so the top brushes actually did something instead of sliding over it, so what is your go-to first move on a really bad glazed flue?

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Almost 20 years of sweeping from the top down, then a 78 year old sweep in Buffalo told me to start at the smoke shelf | Chimney Sweeps - Guest Forum