# Chimney sweeps



## Florabella

Can anybody recommend a chimney sweep for a log burner in the 47, 24, 33 area?


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## Bevdeforges

The term you need to search online (or in the Pages Jaunes online) is "ramonage de cheminee" We get quite a few flyers dropped in our mailbox each year, but there is also an option for doing it yourself if you buy the necessary equipment.


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## EuroTrash

The sweep I use, to get the chimney swept in September you have to ring up and book in about March 
I didn't and I've missed the boat for this year, they're offering me dates in February.


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## Clic Clac

EuroTrash said:


> The sweep I use, to get the chimney swept in September you have to ring up and book in about March
> I didn't and I've missed the boat for this year, they're offering me dates in February.


Make a big ball from all those old T-shirts from the campsite.
'Drop' of diesel. Match. Job done.

But do it 'comme les vosgiens' - after dark, just when the streetlights are switched off. 😳


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## Clic Clac

I forgot to add, if the DIY method worries you, then cleaning logs are available at all good Bricos. 



https://www.leroymerlin.fr/produits/chauffage-plomberie/accessoires-poele-et-cheminee/ramonage/buche-de-ramonage/buche-de-ramonage-avec-garantie-r-c-et-certificat-pyrofeu-82171354.html


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## ccm47

Ask an estate agent. Sellers of homes have to produce a certificate to say that they have maintained their chimneys properly, if they haven't then an estate agent will find one for them so that the sale goes ahead.

Alternatively try one of the shops selling burners, they are interconnected trades.There are several on the D813 from Tonneins to Bordeaux.


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## conky2

EuroTrash said:


> The sweep I use, to get the chimney swept in September you have to ring up and book in about March
> I didn't and I've missed the boat for this year, they're offering me dates in February.


Outrageous. I email my guy and he promises to be here within 48 hours.


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## EuroTrash

conky2 said:


> Outrageous. I email my guy and he promises to be here within 48 hours.


There just don't seem to be enough roofers/sweeps around here. It's a small family business and they cover a whole cluster of communes so they must be way overstretched. Their modus operandi seems to be that he normally has a couple of big jobs on the go, roofing churches or public buildings or whatever (I see he's doing the EHPAD at the moment), and for other jobs he sets aside one slot per week per commune. He does my commune on Friday mornings so I guess depending what people want doing he can book in maybe six to ten customers per week.. Though to be fair the one time I needed him urgently, when a couple of slates came slithering off my roof, he did fit me in quickly. Come to think of it I didn't have to wait too long when I needed the guttering and drainpipes replacing either. Maybe sweeping chimneys goes on the back burner as it were. I suspect that the way it's supposed to work is that when he's finished one sweep you book the next one with him on the spot - the bye law in this commune is that chimneys have to be swept twice a year - and if you get your act together and do that it would tick along like clockwork, but it doesn't work for me because I'm never sure exactly when I'm going to be here. It's no big deal really cos you can always use the cleaning logs if you miss the boat, I just like getting it swept properly every once in a while because he also checks the condition of the chimney and gives the wood burner a once over to make sure it's all in good order. But we could certainly do with more roofers.


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## Poloss

ccm47 said:


> Ask an estate agent. Sellers of homes have to produce a certificate to say that they have maintained their chimneys properly


Not in my experience.
Your insurer or landlord may require a ramonage certif but that's all - unless it's changed recently?


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## LFBEUSTON

Poloss said:


> Not in my experience.
> Your insurer or landlord may require a ramonage certif but that's all - unless it's changed recently?


 If, as I do, sweep the chimney every year and wanted to sell (which I don't by the way!) and a certificate was required I wonder how I could obtain one. This is the first time I have ever heard of such a requirement anyway, it must be new. It's a simple process sweeping a chimney, the hardest part is simply getting on to the roof; which in itself isn't difficult. Most people could do it and save the cost of a sweep.


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## BackinFrance

If your house catches fire and you make a claim on your insurance, your insurer will require proof that the chimney has been swept by a professional. Details of their specific requirements should appear somexhere on your policy, probably in the small print, though they are within their rights to request it anyway.


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## LFBEUSTON

BackinFrance said:


> If your house catches fire and you make a claim on your insurance, your insurer will require proof that the chimney has been swept by a professional. Details of their specific requirements should appear somexhere on your policy, probably in the small print, though they are within their rights to request it anyway.


If your house catches fire and it was because the chimney hadn't been swept and that was the cause of the fire you may be correct. The point is, if you clean the chimney then that can't be a cause of the fire, you don't need a professional at all!


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## Bevdeforges

There is (in some areas?) an exception whereby if a homeowner owns the equipment (basically, the brush and extensions sold in most hardware stores) they can "self-declare" - though I don't know if you have to record the date on which you last cleaned the chimney. I suppose if a certificate is required, it might be a good idea to engage a professional shortly before the house changes hands.


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## LFBEUSTON

Bevdeforges said:


> There is (in some areas?) an exception whereby if a homeowner owns the equipment (basically, the brush and extensions sold in most hardware stores) they can "self-declare" - though I don't know if you have to record the date on which you last cleaned the chimney. I suppose if a certificate is required, it might be a good idea to engage a professional shortly before the house changes hands.


With respect you are missing the point still. You wouldn't have to record when the chimney was cleaned because it cannot be a cause of a fire if it has been cleaned.


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## Bevdeforges

LFBEUSTON said:


> With respect you are missing the point still. You wouldn't have to record when the chimney was cleaned because it cannot be a cause of a fire if it has been cleaned.


OTOH, if you're talking about the insurance company's "concerns" - if there IS a fire, you can't rule out the chimney as a cause of the fire if you don't ask when it was last cleaned (and ask for proof). From the insurance companies' point of view, you can't make a claim for losses from a "break-in" of your house if you can't show them where someone broke something to get in. They will just assume that you left your house unlocked (or otherwise unsecured). Only seems logical that if you have a fire in the general vicinity of your chimney and you can't prove that it has been cleaned recently (however defined) the insurance won't pay.


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## Clic Clac

Never argue with a fireman. 🙉🤓


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## LFBEUSTON

Bevdeforges said:


> OTOH, if you're talking about the insurance company's "concerns" - if there IS a fire, you can't rule out the chimney as a cause of the fire if you don't ask when it was last cleaned (and ask for proof). From the insurance companies' point of view, you can't make a claim for losses from a "break-in" of your house if you can't show them where someone broke something to get in. They will just assume that you left your house unlocked (or otherwise unsecured). Only seems logical that if you have a fire in the general vicinity of your chimney and you can't prove that it has been cleaned recently (however defined) the insurance won't pay.


When it comes to fire investigation you can certainly rule out (or in) where a fire started. Properties are rarely totally destroyed and pin pointing a source of fire is relatively easy. There are no assumptions when it comes to pinpointing fire source.


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## Bevdeforges

OK, OK, I bow to your superior wisdom - for all it matters. Next topic, please.


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