Cleaned my 1,000th flue pipe today, the math still bugs me

I hit 1,000 flue cleanings this morning on a job in Springfield. That number is nuts when I think about how many pounds of creosote that must be, probably close to 4,000 total. I started counting back in 2018 just to track my own pace, but seeing that milestone made me realize something. Most of those jobs were the same basic setup, but maybe 80 of them had surprise damage like cracked clay liners or bird nests. I keep wondering if my average rate is normal for the trade or if I'm just slow between drives. Has anyone else kept a running count and compared notes on time per job?

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grayb6425d ago

Used to figure the average cleaning took about 45 minutes flat, but your 1,000 count makes me rethink that. The surprise jobs with cracked liners or nests can double the clock, no question. I tracked 150 jobs one year and my rate swung from 35 minutes on easy ones to nearly two hours on a nasty bird nest situation. That math about total creosote is wild too, never added it up that way. Seeing your breakdown makes me realize the average is way less useful than knowing how many curveballs you'll hit.