Why Having Your Chimney Scanned is so Important!

​Making informed decisions is essential when it comes to your home. Your chimney is no different. Most interior flue defects are not apparent to the naked eye. This is why having your chimney swept, scanned, and inspected at least annually is so critical. We manufacture the Chim-Scan® Internal Evaluation Systems, chimney cameras for detecting and recording defects and healthy flue images. We are in the chimney inspection business!
Here's an example of why having your chimney scanned annually is so important! 
A homeowner had his chimney swept every year. The chimney sweep, in good faith, thought he was doing a great job of cleaning and inspecting the chimney. There was one catch, though. He didn't use a chimney camera. A year later, he brought a camera to the job. The camera revealed damage to the chimney's interior that might have resulted in a house fire if the conditions were right. Conditions within the chimney can change, which is why it’s so important to have your chimney cleaned, scanned, and inspected at least once annually.
We began our company as a chimney sweeps. In the early '80s, no camera would work in a chimney. We became frustrated when sweeping chimneys because we couldn’t see the flue's interior. It was quite a challenge, but we built our first chimney camera, the only dedicated one at the time. It meant long days, including hard work, all done around our sweeping business. It took over a year to build the first unit. Fast-forward to today (40 years later), where technology is abundant, and we continue to innovate, update, and educate. We’ve come a long way.  
Additionally, when educating our customers, we created the Chim-Scan® Factory-Trained Technician Program, which includes training and two books on scanning and inspecting chimneys. This educational program was written for chimney sweeps, home inspectors, and others interested in chimney scanning. We even offer classes. Our president, Tom Urban, is an industry expert and teacher. He taught at the Chimney Safety Institute of America School, National Chimney Sweep Guild Events, State Chimney Guilds, and other locations. We also provide in-house training in our lab in Fairfield, Iowa.
Tom was interviewed on 20/20, CNN, newspapers, and other sources. He was even a guest star in an episode of This Old House. We also want to help America's homeowners enjoy their fireplaces and keep them warm and toasty. So, look for more blogs or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, or TickTok.

Flue tiles should be joined with a non-water-soluble refractory cement. The original builder omitted this material, and the mortar eroded, leaving a gap between the two tiles. This was not visible to the naked eye.

Our Chim-Scan® controllers/monitors and cameras are commercial grade. Since we make them here in Iowa, we can repair and upgrade our equipment. Serving professional chimney technicians for over 40 years!

We provide chimney inspection training classes at our Iowa location. We built a lab specifically for challenging installations. We welcome chimney technicians, home inspectors, and other trades who want to learn.

#chimney scan, #chimney inspection, #chimney sweep, #chimney camera, #fireplace, #fireplace inspection, #chim-scan, #Chim-Scan Factory Trained Technician, #Chimney Safety Institute of America, #CSIA, #NCSG, #National Chimney Sweep Guild, #20/20, #CNN, #This Old House