Heard a firefighter talking about a call that really stuck with me

I was getting coffee yesterday morning and two guys from the local station were behind me. One was telling the other about a chimney fire they put out last week in the old Pine Street neighborhood. He said the homeowner had the chimney cleaned 'just last fall' but the sweep missed a huge, hidden crack in the clay liner up near the top. The heat got into the brick and it was a full-on structure fire in under twenty minutes. The guy kept saying, 'It looked clean from below.' That phrase has been in my head all day. It made me realize I might be getting too comfortable just running the brush up and down and calling it good if the flue looks clear from the bottom. I'm going to start using my inspection camera on every single job now, no shortcuts. Has anyone else had a close call because a problem was hiding where you couldn't easily see it?

3 comments

3 Comments

butler.mark2mo ago

Had the same wake up call last year with a furnace flue. Everything looked perfect from the basement access, but the camera showed the liner was separated just above the roofline. Customer would have had CO backing up into the house all winter. That "looks clean from below" line hits way too close to home. The camera pays for itself the first time you find one of those hidden killers. Cheap insurance for your reputation and their safety.

juliawalker1d ago

Respectfully disagree Mark. A camera shows you what's there, your eyes and hands will always miss things you can't reach.

gibson.oliver2mo ago

Gotta be honest, that mindset seems a bit off to me. A camera is just another tool, and tools can give a false sense of security too. I've seen guys miss obvious stuff on a screen because they were rushing or the lens was dirty. The real fix is taking the time to do a full, proper check with your own eyes and hands whenever you can. Relying on a camera for every single job might just become the new shortcut.