There is nothing worse for jolly ole Saint Nick than a dirty chimney!

Do you know how many chimneys he sees on Christmas Eve every year?

A lot! Hundreds of millions or more!

And do you know what he would look like at the end of his deliveries if none of those chimneys were cleaned prior to his arrival?

His suit would no longer be red, his beard would be coated in soot, and his jolly Ho-Ho-Ho would be more like Bah Humbug!

I would like you to think about that as this next Christmas season approaches, so you remember to have your chimney cleaned before the big night.

How to Clean a Chimney

Cleaning a chimney requires a person to climb up onto their roof, which is why we normally suggest hiring a professional to tackle this project for you. A long brush is inserted into your chimney and it is moved up and down as it removes all the creosote from the sides of your chimney.

At the same time, the brush will also remove any animals and debris that has gotten into your chimney. All those items can cause blockages, which is dangerous, because they can cause chimney fires.

Once the inside of your chimney is clean, professionals will come inside your home and clean out inside the fireplace area to ensure that you do not have a buildup of creosote in there. As they are doing all the cleaning, they will also perform an inspection to ensure that there are no cracks, missing pieces, or other damage.

What to Do to Keep Your Chimney Cleaner

While there is not much you can do to prevent needing your chimney cleaned for Santa each year, you can do a few things to keep the creosote from building up too much. A few of those things include:

  • Remove ashes regularly
  • Use seasoned firewood, as it burns better
  • Always make sure that you open your damper before starting a fire
  • Create a cleaner fire by using the top down method – This entails placing larger logs on the bottom and smaller logs on top
  • Never burn wet wood, green wood, or pressure treated wood

As soon as your chimney is clean, Santa will easily be able to deliver the gifts to your family and you will not need to worry about a fire getting out of control and damaging the rest of your home.

santa claus fireplace

And if you need some gift ideas check out our gifts for men, women and children areas.