Level 1 sweep and inspection to the NFPA 211 annual standard - flue, crown, cap, and flashing checked and photographed
Chimney sweep logs do not sweep chimneys. They loosen some creosote - which then falls where a brush and vacuum still have to collect it.
Before
After
Before
After
Before
AfterChimney Cleaning Before & After in Torrington, CT
Photos do what promises can’t. Anyone can say a chimney is clean. When you see the before shot, then the after, you know exactly what you’re paying for. Below are real jobs from Torrington and the surrounding hill towns, each one documented the same way we do every sweep: before, after, and a plain-English verdict. Wendell Pike has been doing this since 1999, and he still takes the photos himself.
Recent Transformations
Third-Degree Creosote Glaze in a Downtown Torrington Chimney
The homeowner called us because the fireplace had started smoking back into the living room. When we ran the camera up the flue, we found exactly what we’d expect to find in an older Torrington house that burns wood all winter: a hard, glossy creosote glaze that a standard brush would just skate over. Wendell used mechanical rotary cleaning heads designed specifically for glazed creosote, then ran the camera a second time. The glaze was gone. The tile surface was restored. He gave the homeowner the footage on the spot, and they burned the rest of the season without a single smoke complaint.
Heavy Soot and Nest Debris Removal in a Harwinton Flue
A Harwinton customer mentioned hearing scratching sounds in the chimney the previous spring, but by fall they’d forgotten about it. Bad move. The flue was partially blocked by a squirrel nest, and what wasn’t nest was thick, sticky soot from years of partial burns. Wendell and his crew removed the nest, vacuumed out every bit of debris, and swept the liner clean with a poly brush matched to the flue size. The draft came back strong and the smell in the upstairs bedroom disappeared within a day.
First-Degree Creosote Buildup in a Newer Litchfield Home
This one never made it past first-degree creosote, which is exactly what you want to see. The Litchfield homeowner had burned mostly seasoned hardwood and had the chimney swept last year. The before photos show a dry, flaky, gray-black coating, the kind a brush handles in one pass. Wendell did a standard sweep, checked the damper and the cap, and gave the flue a clean bill. Total time on site was under an hour. That’s what a chimney looks like when you keep up with it.
Fireplace Smoke Chamber Cleaning in a Winsted Colonial
Most sweeps in Torrington will brush the flue and stop. The smoke chamber above the fireplace is where a lot of junk hides, and if it’s not cleaned, it keeps smelling like a campfire every time the wind blows. This Winsted colonial had years of packed soot behind the damper. Wendell scraped and vacuumed the entire smoke chamber, then dropped the camera in to prove it. The homeowner said the living room smelled better within a week, and the chimney stopped puffing smoke back into the room on windy days.
Chimney Cap Replacement After Animal Damage in New Hartford
The old cap was a rusted mess, bent up at the edges from a raccoon that had used the chimney as a den. Rain had been dripping down the flue and staining the fireplace bricks below. Wendell pulled the old cap, cleaned the crown area, and installed a new stainless cap from Olympia Chimney with a proper animal screen. The customer hasn’t heard a single scratch since, and the water staining stopped for good.
Prefab Chimney Liner Sweep and Inspection in a Torrington Ranch
Prefab chimney systems need a lighter touch than a masonry flue. This Torrington ranch had a factory-built chimney, and the previous company had used the wrong brush on it, leaving scratches and doing a poor job getting the creosote out. Wendell switched to a poly brush sized exactly for the liner, swept the whole run, then ran the camera to make sure no joints had separated. Liner was fine. The homeowner got the camera proof on the spot, which they appreciated after a bad experience with the last company.
Want Results Like These?
Every chimney is different, but they all need the same thing: a sweep who shows up, does the work right, and can prove it with photos. Call Top Hat Chimney at (860) 744-2656 and Wendell or one of his crew will set up a time that works for you. Estimates are free, and the price you hear on the phone is the price on the invoice.
Written by Wendell Pike, Owner at Top Hat Chimney, serving Torrington and the surrounding Connecticut communities since 1999.