Can we talk about how ash builds up differently with pine versus oak?

I was doing a cleanout last Tuesday at a cabin up near Lake Placid where they only burn pine. Normally I see the gray powdery ash from hardwood, but this stuff was a thick black crust stuck to the flue walls. Took me twice as long to scrape it all off. Anybody else notice a big difference depending on what folks are burning?

2 comments

2 Comments

rowan26212d ago

Notice that black crust is basically creosote and it's way worse with pine because pine has more sap and resin in it. Oak gives off cleaner, fluffier ash that just falls apart when you brush it. I've done cleanouts where the pine ash was literally like tar, had to chip it off with a scraper instead of just brushing it down. That's the main reason I tell people to avoid softwoods if they can, that thick buildup is a chimney fire waiting to happen.

barbara_butler11d agoMost Upvoted

Hell, I've chipped out so much pine gunk I could open a roofing business on the side!