The day I realized my brush was too stiff for a historic flue in Charleston

I was cleaning a 150-year-old chimney downtown last fall, and my standard poly brush got stuck halfway up. The old clay liner was rough and uneven, and I had to pull hard for ten minutes to get it free. I switched to a softer horsehair brush I keep in the truck for delicate jobs, and it slid right through without a scratch. Anyone else run into this with really old brickwork, and what brush do you grab first?

2 comments

2 Comments

jason_robinson9d ago

My old boss in Savannah showed me that trick twenty years ago. We were working on a row of houses from the 1850s, and he always kept a worn-out horsehair brush in his kit. Said the modern stuff was too harsh for the original mortar. I’ve seen a stiff brush actually knock loose a chunk of that old, crumbly clay liner. Now my softer brush is the first thing I try on any flue built before 1900. It just glides over the rough spots.

elizabeth_gonzalez9d ago

Ever try a natural bristle brush on those old liners? It's even softer than worn horsehair...