The last, dead leaf had fallen off of the oak tree just two weeks ago. It was officially winter. No snow, just bitter cold and overcast skies. Fortunately for us, we had kindled a blazing fire to stave off the chill. Just as I was about to leave for work that evening there was a frantic pounding on the door. My dad opened the door to find our neighbor standing there with a wild but urgent look in her eyes. “YOUR HOUSE IS ON FIRE!!!” she screamed. To which dad replied “no it’s not”. After sufficient proof had been given (flames billowing out of the chimney), dad was convinced.
The wail of the fire engines coming down the street was like the singing of angels. We had quit the building 5 minutes prior to their arrival. Men poured out of the vehicles, unwinding hoses and attaching them to their proper places. Soon streams of countless gallons of water were directed toward the chimney cap causing a pillar of smoke and steam to rise into the cold, November sky.
The aftermath of the event left the house smelling like smoke for weeks. Water had mixed with the soot and was all over the living room floor. We were lucky the house hadn’t burned down however all this could have been avoided had we paid attention to the creosote build up in the chimney
Creosote comes in many forms. In its initial stage, it is flaky and easily removed from the chimney with a bit of light sweeping. The second stage is a hard, brittle substance that adheres to the walls of the chimney a little more tenaciously requiring more effort in its removal. The final stage is worst of all. The creosote is now baked onto the wall of the chimney and is hard and shiny, not too dissimilar from coal.
A chimney fire can be ignited by an average fire of about 1000º F. When ignited at its final stage, the creosote burns long and hot (up to but not limited to 2000º F) and is very difficult to extinguish. The best way to avoid this is to have a licensed professional inspect your chimney every year to ensure that it is safe to burn.