Ballam: Vt. Businessman Finds Niche in Keeping Chimneys Clean

Here in New Hampshire it’s getting cold and it seems early. It was 32 degrees one morning this past week, and I hated to do it, but we fired up the woodstove. All the living creatures in my home appreciated it, even though it was at least a month earlier than I like to get it going.

That act got me thinking about chimneys and chimney fires. All the firefighters I know hate chimney fires. It’s always cold, the roofs are usually snow covered and at least in my community, the chimneys are 30 to 40 feet in the air. It’s just no fun and they can be stubborn.

This year my department is more prepared than ever before. We just bought a new chimney cleaning kit aptly called Chimney Scrubber. The setup is difficult to describe. I’ll do my best, but it’s better to look at the photos to get a better idea.

Anyway, instead of bristle brushes like most chimney cleaners use, the Chimney Scrubber uses a series of stainless steel coils looped and attached to a cast iron fitment. A stainless steel chain, a 10-pound cannon-ball shaped weight and a 10-pound torpedo help carry the device through the chimney, using gravity to carry the system through the flue.

It’s a pretty ingenious device that was invented by Matthew Kiely, an engineer who had a problem and figured out a way to resolve it. Although he’s not a firefighter, he thinks like one and like most firefighters, would rather stay off the roof. He developed the system to clean his own chimney on a regular basis and came up with a permanently mounted pulley system that allowed him to remain on terra firma while cleaning his chimney.

I first saw the Chimney Scrubber at the New England Association of Fire Chiefs conference and show this summer. I immediately saw its value and appreciated the ingenuity of the product. I was surprised to learn Kiely, the owner of the company and the inventor of the kit, is from Peacham, Vt. which is less than 30 miles from our station. In fact he had sold several units to nearby departments.

Because this blog is supposed to be about business and products, let me get to that part. It always fascinates me to learn about how cool products and neat inventions get to market and the Chimney Scrubber is one of those illustrative stories.

After Kiley installed his invention in his home, he started marketing it to homeowners. A Pennsylvania firefighter told him the device worked well at extinguishing chimney fires. That firefighter suggested Kiley make the kit with different size scrubbers for the various flues firefighters encounter and to put it in a rugged bag so it could be transported and used at fire scenes. That was six years ago.

Kiley enlisted the help of his local Peacham Fire Department and other locals in the area for essentially beta testing and perfecting it for fire service use. For about a year and a half, he tweaked the product, working on the coils so they could withstand the high temperatures of burning creosote found in chimney fires, beefing up the chain and offering different weight shapes to accommodate different chimney designs and blockages.

Kiley took his invention to the New England chief’s show in 2009 and it was a hit. He said 11 departments from four states bought them at first sight.  Kiley has since sold hundreds of Chimney Scrubbers.

Fast forward to 2014 – that’s when I “discovered” the Chimney Scrubber system and I too was struck by the design and its practicality. I was sold, but I am only a captain and the chief has to approve purchases.

Kiley came to one of our meeting recently, made his pitch and collectively we decided to buy it. It helped that people we know in neighboring fire departments had offered positive testimony too.

I am always amazed at the networking that exists in the fire service. We trust each other, value each other’s opinions and work together well.

As good as the product Chimney Scrubber is, it’s doubtful we would have bought it if another chief had given it bad reviews. That’s just the way it works.  A man with a good idea and a small company can grow in the fire service by providing a needed product and good service.

Like so many products and even apparatus I’ve seen, a company was developed to fit a niche and pretty much grew by word-of-mouth.  To me, that’s what makes the fire service so special. Everyone, from the rookie firefighter to the presidents and owners of businesses and manufacturers are working toward the same goal – to save life and property.

Now, we just have to figure out what to do with that knot of rusty chains, prickly wire brushes and rusty bucket that was our chimney kit. I hear scrap metal is going for about seven cents a pound.

Find out more about Chimney Scrubber at www.chimneyscrubber.com.