Comments on: Hot or Not? Fireplace Maintenance

By: Charlie

Charlie — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 18:07:59 +0000

According to the link, you CANNOT VACUUM HOT ASHES with these things.

Yep, check it out - pure unadulterated snake oil… I checked all the major brands of “ash vac” and every one of ‘em says you have to wait until there’s no live coals. So really, it’s just a way overpriced HEPA vac with a heavy metal can.

There’s a huge market out there for a safe way to vacuum hot ashes. Seems like a water filter would do the job…

By: TexasChimneyPro

TexasChimneyPro — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 23:05:11 +0000

They have nice affordable shop vacs at home depot that you can vacuum out the ash and will not blow dust all over your house. I own a chimney company in houston and that is what we use. I never have a problem with getting dust around the house. You can use a shop vac for some many things they are well worth buying. One thing to think about as well make sure you get your chimney inspected once a year. Most people don’t know but a build up of creosote in you chimney is flammable and can actually cause a chimney fire “a fire combustion inside your chimney”. A lot of house fires are actually caused by this. Not to mention a yearly maintenance can save you thousands of dollars if problems with your chimney are detected early.

By: fred

fred — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 14:51:28 +0000

Here’s a link for the PC drywall sander:

http://www.amazon.com/Porter-Cable-7800-Drywall-Sander-13-Foot/dp/B00002267Z

By: fred

fred — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 14:49:41 +0000

Here is a link for a Fein Vacuum:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000CEQEYU/?tag=googhydr-20&hvadid=1099436861&ref=pd_sl_1gltnntp7h_b

By: fred

fred — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 14:46:47 +0000

We use Porter Cable drywall sanders hooked to Fein Vaccums.
The Fein machines are a real class act - producing substantially less noise than other vacuums that we’ve had over the years.
Fein now has a few new models to choose from

By: Brau

Brau — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 07:47:06 +0000

Agree with Stan. I use my Rigid Shop Vac but use the finest grade filter (specifically indicates use with drywall and ashes). It does not blow dust into my living room and I should know … I do the dusting. I have to wonder who’s dumb enough to vacuum when it’s still hot, though.

By: MeasureOnceCutTwice

MeasureOnceCutTwice — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 03:39:07 +0000

I put an old drywall bucket in series with the vac & hose. I cut two holes in the top, wedged in a straight floor extension that I never use into one, and attached a spare hose to the extension. When I’m cleaning up messy stuff or liquid I just stick the normal vac hose into the other hole in the bucket & use the spare hose. Sure, some makes it past the bucket into the vac, but most stays in the bucket.
I did the same thing with a piece of plywood & a wheelbarrow when I had to dig post holes in very sandy soil. I tried using a post hole digger, but the sand kept flowing off the auger back into the hole. I ended up excavating with the vacuum.

By: shopmonger

shopmonger — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 00:02:52 +0000

use a bag ……….See my previous posts on using a vacum for the fire place

By: Old Coot

Old Coot — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 21:13:00 +0000

What Stan said.

By: Stan

Stan — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 21:00:24 +0000

I dunno. My shopvac does drywall and in the manual says it can be used to vacuum out the fireplace.
I got the HEPA filter, and the bags for it.
It was less than $100. I’ve used it in remodeling the house and sucked up a hella lot of drywall dust and lath & plaster, without any dust cloud in sight.

By: Kris

Kris — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 20:40:51 +0000

There’s also a water trap thing that you can put between your shopvac and the nozzle to trap drywall dust. Maybe this would work with ash as well?

By: Steve Fine

Steve Fine — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 20:20:23 +0000

There is a drywall bag for the ShopVac. Can this be used with ash?

By: Dano

Dano — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 19:54:06 +0000

I would have gotten an extension hose and left that vac on the other side of the window. But thats just me.

By: Kif

Kif — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 18:14:38 +0000

It sucks ash.

By: Rick

Rick — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 17:31:40 +0000

You might not want to bother for a fireplace but I can see the true value in owning one of these for my pellet stove where getting into all of the nooks and crannies translates into better performance.