Due to the tough economic times or to save some money, many people opt to maintain their chimneys on their own. While some of these people get it right, others make plenty of mistakes that put their chimneys at the risk of developing problems. If you maintain your own chimney, here are some of the mistakes you might be making thus making the unit a risk for you and your family:

Failing to clean the chimney at the right time

Many homeowners know that they need to undertake chimney cleaning; however, only a few of them know the right time to do it. To keep your home safe, you need to conduct cleaning at specific periods of the year. As rule of thumb, you should clean the unit at the beginning of the heating season. Also, ensure that you clean the chimney at least once a year. Chimney sweeping gets rid of creosote that puts your chimney at the risk of fire.

Failing to undertake chimney inspection

Due to ignorance or lack of knowledge, some people don’t inspect their chimneys, which is wrong. Remember that by cleaning your chimney without inspection you might be covering up some problems that might pose problems to you later on. To be on the safe side, you should inspect your chimney for problems such as leakages, brick defects, and many others. Through inspection, you can pick the issues while they are in their early stages and fix them before they become a hazard. You can undertake the chimney inspection on your own if you have the skills or hire a chimney expert to help you out.

Installing the wrong chimney parts

If you can correctly clean the chimney and even undertake the inspection on your own, you might have the impression that you can make simple installations such as installing the chimney cap, but the work isn’t always easy. In addition to improperly installing the chimney parts, you are also at more risk of buying the wrong units. Instead of installing the parts on your own, you should hire a chimney contractor to help you out with buying the right quality of chimney parts. The contractor will also help you with the installation of the parts. When hiring the contractor, ensure that he/she is certified and highly experienced.

Conclusion

These are some of the mistakes that you should avoid making when maintaining your chimney. To have an easy time, work with a reputable chimney company.