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Guy at a supply house in Tulsa laughed at me for brushing flues after every job, and I'm still thinking about it
So I was picking up some rods at a supply house in Tulsa back in March and this old timer next to me asked what I was there for. I told him I needed a new wire brush because mine was shot, and he goes "you're brushing after every single job?" like I just told him I wash my van twice a day. He said he only brushes when the homeowner is watching or when the creosote is bad enough to see, and that most sweeps he knows do the same. I nodded along but honestly it bugged me the whole drive home. Here's the thing, I've pulled chunks of glazed creosote out of flues that looked clean from the top, and I've had two callbacks this year that would've been fires if I'd skipped the brush. Brushing is maybe 10 extra minutes on a normal job and it's the whole reason people pay us. I get that time is money when you're running 6 stops a day, but skipping the brush to save minutes feels like a barber not cleaning his clippers between cuts. Any of you actually skip brushing on routine sweeps, and if so how do you sleep at night?
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cora_scott771mo ago
Man, here's the thing nobody's saying: that old timer probably works a market where homeowners don't know any better, but you're building a rep that travels. I've got a guy in my area who's been sweeping 30 years and gets every job through word of mouth because people tell their neighbors "he actually gets up there and does the work." Meanwhile the shortcut guys are on Angi fighting over $89 coupons and getting roasted in reviews when a chimney catches. The 10 minutes isn't the cost, it's the marketing budget you don't have to pay for. You keep brushing, let him keep laughing, and see who's still getting calls in five years.
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