Measurements of Flue Gas Emissions in Chimney Sweeping

Practice shows that of all the services provided by chimney sweeps, people or users in the field have by far the most complaints about flue gas emission measurements. As a result, they have started with better maintenance of the entire heating system, and because of this we can also confirm the second assertion that there are fewer and fewer inadequate measurements and that heating appliances are polluting the environment less and less. This same population of people has over time also wrapped their dwelling in a façade with a more or less appropriate insulation envelope, which means that the temperature in the dwelling is more stable and the savings on heating costs are significantly higher.

Solution and Method

Practice shows that of all the services provided by chimney sweeps, people or users in the field have by far the most complaints about flue gas emission measurements. The complaints are mainly due to the fact that burner service technicians also carry out measurements with more or less the same equipment. The service technician performs the measurement in order to more easily determine whether the burner has actually been properly adjusted, whilst chimney sweeps only carry out control over heating appliances and maintain monitoring, and people regard this as two payments for the same work.

However, it is also true that servicing is not mandatory – even the service technicians themselves recommend it every two years, whilst the chimney sweep service must carry out measurements once a year. The most conscientious ones also service burners every year. Chimney sweeps operating in rural areas observe a trend that over the last five years the number of liquid fuel boilers has been decreasing significantly every year.

People prefer to opt for solid fuel boilers and thus save some money. With these boilers, however, measurements are not carried out unless required by an inspector. There is thus no adequate supervision here, as some people use anything they can get their hands on as fuel, and nothing happens.

Usually, the vast majority opt for conventional boilers (often second-hand), as there is no money for anything better. At this point we can confirm the assumption that the number of measurements carried out on an annual basis is declining. In addition to cheaper energy sources, technology also enables more advanced types of heating with heat pumps, which run on electricity, and measurement of flue gas emissions is not necessary (here either). In neighbouring Austria, people mostly opt for forced-draught log boilers (gasification boilers) or biomass boilers (pellets, wood chips), as such fuel is also 50% cheaper than heating oil.

They are also leaning towards larger boiler rooms, heating plants, which heat several dozen or several hundred households at the same time. A well-known example is an area in Vienna where part of the households are heated via a heating plant where waste is incinerated. Approximately 200,000 households are connected to this heating plant. In practice, users thus pay around 50 EUR per month, which is incomparably less than in our country. At this point, the state should perhaps step in with some subsidies or favourable loans both for users and for technologies that convert waste into (thermal) energy.

A greater role for the state in the future is certainly one of the solutions to the problem of chimney sweep services. In households where solid fuel has been used from the very beginning, there is a noticeable trend that due to the poorer efficiency of the heating appliance, they replace it with a newer one, as a rule using the same energy source. The reasons for replacement also lie in the fact that for years and years, in addition to designated logs, people have also burned all other wood waste left over from construction, for example, and in this way have significantly contributed to a shorter service life of the heating appliance.

Results

As a result, they have started with better maintenance of the entire heating system, and because of this we can also confirm the second assertion that there are fewer and fewer inadequate measurements and that heating appliances are polluting the environment less and less. This same population of people has over time also wrapped their dwelling in a façade with a more or less appropriate insulation envelope, which means that the temperature in the dwelling is more stable and the savings on heating costs are significantly higher. This mainly concerns older houses, where at the time of construction awareness of environmental protection, heating appliance efficiency and the effects of building insulation was not yet so widespread.

It can be observed in the field that new builds usually receive a façade and insulation layer within a year or two of moving in, and thus families try to save on heating from the very beginning. With the choice of their chimney sweep, people are slowly getting used to the fact that inspections and cleaning of chimneys and measurements of flue gas emissions are part of a process during the year when part of the heating system is also inspected and properly measured. A car also needs to be taken for servicing every so often, although until recently every garage was able to carry out routine servicing, but nowadays the systems are so sophisticated that everyone prefers to take their car to an authorised mechanic.

It is also the case with chimney sweeping that development is moving forward, and with it legal regulations and necessary activities that you can no longer carry out yourself. Despite practically guaranteed work and relatively low costs for initial equipment, it can be observed that interest in the chimney sweep profession is declining. Part of the reasons may relate to the education system, which does not sufficiently encourage enrolment and does not try to present this profession as attractive, and many young people also prefer to pursue more prestigious professions or try their luck abroad.

In any case, the author will continue to operate in this field and will strive to ensure that their users are satisfied with them.