Fire Department | City of Norwalk
Fire Department | City of Norwalk
Our Norwalk Fire Department wants to remind the community that chimney fires are preventable. To prevent dirty chimney-related chimney fires, the Department asks you to please schedule annual inspections and cleanings as needed. The inspections and cleanings help make sure your chimney is properly capped. An uncapped chimney is a welcoming place for birds, raccoons, squirrels, and other critters. These critters bring with them nesting materials, fur, feathers, and feces, all of which can cause a chimney blockage, dirty the flue, and lead to a chimney fire.
Additionally, anytime you burn wood, byproducts of combustion are formed, and those byproducts include creosote and soot. Soot needs to be removed from the chimney periodically, but the byproduct of woodburning that's most concerning is creosote. Creosote is the black or brown residue that can be crusty and flaky, tar-like, drippy and sticky, or shiny and hardened. At first, the buildup may be light and easy to remove. But with each fire you burn in your fireplace, creosote can build up, thicken, and glaze. Naturally, creosote is corrosive and can damage the flue liner over time, but the real concern is its high flammability. So don't forget to schedule your annual inspections or clean-ups!
For any questions for the City, please reach out to our Customer Service Center at CustomerService@Norwalkct.org or (203) 854-3200. For more information, please visit
https://www.csia.org/.../the-facts-about-chimney-fires.../
Original source can be found here.
Alerts Sign-up