Dirty Windows Don’t Burn Down Houses

The Challenge of Regulating the Chimney Industry in the US and Abroad

By Verity Schramm, Co-Owner, Midtown Chimney Sweeps

Why don’t Americans sweep their chimneys?

Why are less than 25% of America’s 28 million venting systems being swept and inspected annually?

The EPA estimates there are more than 17.5 million fireplaces, 241,000 hydronic heaters, and 10.1 million wood stoves in the United States. That’s about 28 million venting systems. According to NFPA 211, chimneys, fireplaces, and vents shall be inspected at least once a year in accordance with the requirements of Section 15.2. How many systems can one chimney professional care for in a year? About 1,000. That means we should have roughly 28,000 people in our industry to adequately serve America’s chimneys and fireplaces.

We currently have somewhere between 6,000-10,000 chimney sweeps.

Assuming the higher number of sweeps, this means that we need at least 18,000 more people in our industry before we are adequately caring for America’s chimneys and fireplaces. And we also need the owners of 18 million venting systems to call for service.

My background is economics and government. And I also own a chimney sweeping company with my husband, so when I look at this shortfall of 18,000 technicians in our industry, I’m curious as to what is happening. In an industry whose job it is to make sure we can safely bring fire into our wood-framed homes, we should start to take notice. Is there an issue with supply? Is there a high barrier to entering the chimney sweeping industry? Training issues? Too much government regulation? Too little? What about demand? Why are only about 25% of these chimney systems receiving yearly service?

Right-Sizing Supply and Demand

More than one consultant has reviewed our business and concluded that we are a capacity constrained industry. There are more people who need their chimneys swept than there are people to do it. How many customers, I wonder, call for a sweep in September, cannot get a sweep for 6 weeks or more and it falls off their task list. And how many people simply aren’t calling in the first place?

Quite literally, a $300 annual chimney sweep and inspection performed according to the guidelines can prevent or reduce loss of life and property. (Thank you to all those US chimney sweeps back in the early 2000s who created the standards of inspection now found in the NFPA 211 Chapter 15!). It would seem that it is in the homeowner’s best interest to maintain their chimney – pretty cheap insurance policy. But it’s no surprise that people don’t always behave in a way that’s best for them. Think six month dentist visits or yearly physicals.

This kind of irrational behavior falls under the economic category called… wait for it… “irrational behavior,” and is the subject of much debate, especially on matters of public health and safety. When does a government involve themselves in correcting irrational behavior and when does it stay out of it? Think about the following list: building codes, auto insurance, plastic bags, vaccines, restaurant food preparation, etc. Which would you want regulated?

A government’s duty might be to protect its people, not run their lives, but the question becomes, “What’s the difference?” And this is where the complexity of the issue lies: the varying degree of tolerance for government interference. There are people who want absolutely no building codes to those who prefer it when you can’t change a doorknob without a permit. When and how does a government step in to protect the people, and when is it reaching over the line into running our lives? Throw in discussions about liberty and licentiousness, and you have the making for an existential crisis the likes of which…well, the likes of which our country’s in now.

Dirty windows won’t burn down my house. But we all know that dirty chimneys can, along with undersized electrical systems and bad gas heaters. Arguments about if we should regulate aside, just looking at comparable industries, our industry is comparably underregulated.

In many conversations in the industry, there seems to be a lot of differing opinions about regulating our industry. And the topic seems to be tied to our identity. We might just be the last unexploited American business frontier. The John Wayne or John Dutton of the service industry. People who answered the call to become U.S. chimney sweeps during the 70s oil crisis were, as Jim Gillam puts it in his 2023 chronicle of the formation of the U.S. hearth industry, “self-starters, creative and ingenious, the self-sufficient.”

During a recent trip overseas, we were exposed to a very different approach to our industry. Frankly, it’s an approach that seems to strike a mixture of envy and terror in American sweeps. Federally recognized and required sweep training and certification (controlling supply) and government-mandated sweeping (controlling demand).

Belgium, Germany, and England: Contrasts in Regulation

European regulation of chimney sweeping is not a new thing. According to a Viennese colleague and museum in Vienna, in 1432, the city ordered that chimneys be regularly controlled and cleaned (controlling demand). In 1512, emperor Maximilian I awarded Hans from Milan the first chimney sweeper master concession (controlling supply). Step aside Columbus. In 1432, Vienna swept the chimney flue.

Recently reading through the European Federation of Chimney Sweeps (ESCHOE) report that was written just after COVID-19 shutdowns, I found two key passages that very much highlight a stark contrast between a regulated chimney industry in Germany and an unregulated chimney industry in Belgium.

ESCHFOE Excerpt: Belgium

From the point of view of Techlink (the Belgian Association representing installers and contractors) the Corona Pandemic means a turning point for the Belgian guild because the chimney sweep sector has literally collapsed due to the protective measures taken… Apparently, the age of the chimney sweeps, who are interested in the organization, and who – until some time ago – also provided advice and assistance played an important role. Communication with the companies is limited due to a lack of digital equipment or knowledge. An increase in new businesses could not be recorded… Other topics covered are the New Rule on Chimney Openings. Flanders plans to introduce legal measures. According to estimates, binding measures are only to be expected in a few years, if at all.

Now contrast this with the German report. Notice they list the exact number of sweeps in their country to the one’s place.

ESCHFOE Excerpt: Germany

There are 7,983 chimney sweeps in Germany. Due to the corona pandemic, public life in Germany was shut down in 2020. The chimney sweep trade was able to carry out the chimney sweep works in compliance with the applicable distance and hygiene rules…The Federal Association of Chimney Sweeps…has established a new seal of approval “specialist company for the chimney sweep.

Over 5,500 chimney sweep companies now take part in the seal of approval…This means a positive external image for the profession. The Federal Environment Ministry has published a new draft bill on chimney heights

Chimney sweeps in Germany are so powerful that it’s actually illegal to refuse them entry into your home. Remember, this is from a culture where historically fires would and did decimate entire towns. Recently, after years of pressure from the European Union, the German government ended the centuries-old monopoly of chimney sweeps that had been in place since the Middle Ages, dismantling a system entrenched in the guild traditions that shaped Europe long ago. Until then, about 8,000 master chimney sweeps controlled exclusive districts, barring competition and requiring homeowners to hire the designated sweep for their area. It will be interesting to see how this deregulation affects the trade.

As mentioned in a previous article, there are 16 chimney sweep trade schools, functioning somewhat like four-year colleges, complete with dormitories and cafeterias. The meister schórnsteinfegers in Germany are so highly trained they are the official government body that approves a chimney’s use.

In contrast to the highly-trained 7,983 schórnsteinfegers in Germany, our US industry regularly has unqualified, incompetent fireplace installers and chimney sweeps armed with a Google My Business page and a nice website. Recently, a new customer of ours indicated they had a reline completed by a competitor the year before with the system smoking ever since. Our technician looked past the cast iron damper and saw a 6 inch round stainless steel liner dangling in the smoke chamber improperly sized, uninsulated, and over 50% restrictive of the minimum required cross section area of the fireplace opening. Unfortunately, we’ve seen this story on repeat.

While I doubt our U.S. hearth industry would tolerate Germany’s top-down approach, there must be a sweet spot between too much and too little regulation. Maybe there is a way we can innovate our trade organizations that would replace a need for more interference. Is there a way to correct the externality in our industry and harness the power of the free-market to correct our supply and demand curve “holistically” rather than take a dose of government regulation?

The Goldilocks Zone

The Heating Equipment Testing and Approval Scheme (HETAS) in the United Kingdom may be an entity in a kind of a goldilocks zone. Approached by the government to develop a training/certification program for sweeping in the United Kingdom, HETAS centralized the industry with robust training and a government recognized certification, becoming in essence a non-government regulatory body. HETAS not only trains and certifies, but investigates complaints and even assists with permits.

A U.S. entity that is also in this sweet spot may be the International Association of Certified Home Inspectors (InterNACHI). While not a government licensing agency, InterNACHI fulfills the role of one. Their school is recognized, approved, and/ or accredited by more than 100 state, government, and non-government agencies. Also investigating complaints and failures of those it certifies, it may be a model of a trade organization that is effectively performing industry self-regulation.

With this background of regulation formation and our industry psyche resisting big government, it is possibly time for large players in the hearth industry to consider uniting to be more of a centralized self-regulating body. My hope is that we are on this trajectory, beginning to draft a plan forward for our industry to lead this charge.

Our trade is old, it is niche, and requires much deep competency and skill and education. It would appear to me an increase in some kind of “regulation” is appropriate for proper annual chimney sweeping and proper fireplace installation and relining. If we don’t want government regulation, we need to step up and do it ourselves. Why? Because dirty windows don’t burn down houses, but dirty chimneys and improperly installed fireplaces do. ■