Reversing a chimney brush

[FORCE FAB]

Replace your last rod with a piece of all thread(threaded rod)...Drill a hole in a 2x4 thats wider than the chimney top,put it over the threaded rod with a big flat washer and tighten the nut until it flips the bristles of the brush the other way

 

[cityevader]

Replace your last rod with a piece of all thread(threaded rod)...Drill a hole in a 2x4 thats wider than the chimney top,put it over the threaded rod with a big flat washer and tighten the nut until it flips the bristles of the brush the other way

Now that is downright brilliant!!

 

[firefighterjake]

I looked all over the boards for this but apparently nobody is talking about it. I have a 6" stainless chimney, got a 6" poly brush to clean it. When I started to push it in from the top, I realized that it would not come out. The bristles had wedged themselves in. I tried twisting it and it was too tight for that as well. So I pushed the bristles down enough to dislodge it. Went to the local store and tried pushing a wire brush into a section of chimney. Same thing happened. I had to push it all the way through to get it out. Asked the clerk and he said that you had to push the brush all the way through to the stove so that it can expand and come back through the other way. None of the product manuals (Drolet stove, Selkirk chimney, Rutland brush) say anything about this. Unfortunately I didn't pay close enough attention to the construction of the stove to see if there was a big enough opening in the top for the brush to clear this way. My stove pipe and chimney go straight up and out with no elbows. But from the image in the manual where they talk about the bypass damper, it appears that this space doesn't exist. And some of the stoves at the store (other brands than mine) had a damper at the outlet of the stove.

So what am I missing? Are you supposed to be able to reverse the brush mid section in the chimney? Doesn't feel like it is possible. If not, then how do you clean it without taking the stove pipe off? Is there another type of brush that is reversable?

Not that it helps you a whole lot, but I have a 6 inch SS chimney and a 6 inch poly brush (bought from Northline Express) and I have no issues with pulling or pushing it in or out at any point in the cleaning process . . . although I had read some folks here at hearth.com earlier that have had some issues with the brush being too tight so I was prepared for that potential problem (i.e. most of the folks had trimmed the brush a bit in those cases.)

I'm thinking that this problem may be due to the brush and the rigidity of the brush as it pushes out against the liner as it seems as though some folks like me have had zero issues while other folks have had problems.

 

[ScottB]

I talked to the suppliers of the chimney, stove and brush. This is what I learned:
The 6" brush from Rutland is designed for 6" or larger chimney. If it is smaller it will be too tight.
The 6" Supervent chimney from Selkirk is actually 5 7/8". That is why it wedges. However, their 6" stovepipe is really 6". the brush slides through it both ways like a hot knife through butter. I suppose then that if you pushed it beyond the chimney into the stovepipe that you could reverse it.
If you have a catalytic stove, you are not supposed to clean the soot down into the stove as it will end up in the plate/baffle area in the top. So apparently the correct way with this type of stove, as some of you have mentioned, is to remove the stovepipe. Use plastic bags, tape, etc.
It seems like there are some good design opportunities in this area to make this process a lot simpler.
The person I spoke with at Rutland mentioned their creosote remover in granular and liquid form. They claim that it is for all types of chimneys and is not corrosive to the stainless steel. They have a techinal data sheet on their website. Item #97.
When I looked down the chimney, I didn't see any creosote, just some soot. But then I don't know how visible it would be with a flashlight in a 20' chimney. I did see some on the chimney cap.
For now, I am going to try some of the creosote remover and see how it looks. I will trim the brush (1/16" off of each bristle) and do a good cleaning if it looks necessary. Then I will clean it thoroughly in the spring when the heating season is over.