Thought I knew how to clean a double-wall pipe but I was dead wrong

For 7 years I used the same stiff wire brush on my double-wall chimney pipe. Figured it was fine since I got soot out every time. Then last winter I pulled a section apart to check it and found rust pitting all along the inner liner. An old sweep at a shop in Denver told me I was using a brush that was too aggressive for the stainless steel. Now I use a poly brush and check the pipe joints twice a year. Anyone else wreck a pipe from using the wrong brush?

2 comments

2 Comments

river1823d agoMost Upvoted

Oh man, I did almost the exact same thing with my first setup. Switched to a poly brush after I noticed little scratches inside and it's way gentler on the metal. Your mileage may vary but checking those joints twice a year saved me from a full replacement later on.

spencer_ross3d ago

Piggybacking on what @river182 said, honestly I've noticed the same pattern with a lot of little things around the house. Spending a few extra minutes on maintenance now saves you hours of headache later almost every single time.