Peer into the throat of a smoker

Peer into the throat of a smoker...

My potbellied stove chimney, that is. This is the view from the living room, with the elbow pipe removed. You're looking up 15' of pipe, with a 270mm zoom lens and teh onboard flash. The speedlight wouldn't fit into the pipe with the camera lens, so this is the best I could do. I'll take another in daylight to inspect further. The black and white is the varmint cap at the top.

We had two chimney sweeps come out to give it a going over. The first, Stan, had come out last year to clean and inspect. Apparently he's forgetful, because he didn't remember. He also didn't remember that part of the job was outdoor on the roof, and didn't remember that its winter (with a patch of snow on the roof). "Ya mean I braved those treacherous icy roads for Nuthin?? Call me when the roads are better, and there's no snow on the roof."

Sweep #2 sounded promising on the phone, until they sent the new guy with limited tools. Busted a spring on the stove bypass trying to get the rigid rod to bend 90 degrees (my wife in the back, shaking her head.) She kicked him out and was smoking more than the stove by the end.

2 weeks without winter fires has me a bit steamed, so I got out the Stove manual (Yup, occasionally I DO read a manual!) and figured out how to fix the bypass door, and inspect the pipe. Next items to purchase are a fitted brush and rod, and an ash filter for my shop vac. I am already considering designs for fitting my shop vac to the pipe with a boot to stop any ash from entering the home. Make a fitted hole for the chimney rod and I'm in business!

Tomorrow.