Posted: 10:58 AM - Nov 21, 2006
Article appeared in The Winchester Star on Tuesday 21 November 2006.
Winchester — For Shane Henry of McKay Chimney Specialists, a chimney is a lot like a stocking hanging beside one on Christmas Day:
You never know what’s going to be inside.
“Today, we’re going to be cleaning out a furnace flue,” he said recently as he put on his tuxedo coat and top hat and prepared to call at a home being renovated on Woodland Avenue.
“They may have birds in the chimney or some cracks, so we’re going to put a flue cap onto it and see how it goes.”
A look inside the home
showed cracks that have built
up in the chimney, which
was constructed in the 1920s
and will likely need a new
liner.
No one knows what the next call will bring, but Henry said he can count on plenty of customers at this time of year.
“I started getting busy a month ago,” he said. “I have 26 messages on my cell phone today alone that I need to return. We’re very, very busy.
“The first cold snap we get is when people start thinking about us. But I get most of my business by returning calls and getting my name out there.”
Henry began his career as an apprentice relining chimneys, then began sweeping them.
But though he is proud to call himself a “chimney sweep,” he said his job extends beyond cleaning.
“The most common call we get is for inspection,” he said. “There are a lot of people who can clean chimneys, but they need to have them inspected to make sure there are no cracks, no animals. They have to be safe to use. That’s the most important thing.”
And Henry said oil-heated homes need this inspection just as much as homes with wood-burning fireplaces: “Although you may have an oil heater, it still uses an oil chimney for ventilation, and you need to get that checked, too.”
Henry suggested that homeowners with chimneys make the call to chimney maintenance professionals every summer, when fewer people need fast service.
He also recommended that fireplace owners burn as large a fire as possible in the fireplace, since it creates fewer contaminants.
Pressure-treated lumber and other such materials should not be burned in a fireplace, he added.
Henry said the coat and hat he wears on the job are a salute to the commonly portrayed uniform of the chimney sweep in the 19th and 20th centuries.
That uniform has a somber background. “During the turn of the century, chimney sweep was a very poor person’s trade,” he said. “Often, it was orphans who did it in England. Funeral directors would throw their old outfits onto the street for garbage pickup. Often, these kids would grab the coats and top hats, and that became the chimney sweep uniform.”
Besides being a low-paying profession for the children forced to undertake it, the work was very dangerous, since the children often suffered burns, injuries, and a form of cancer caused by the soot they were forced to inhale.
Many injuries
were also inflicted by
their employers, who
were often abusive
and neglectful toward
the children.
After the passage of child labor laws and improvements in equipment, the image of the chimney sweep changed radically. They were portrayed as happy, kind- hearted dreamers in the popular movie “Mary Poppins,” and kissing or shaking hands with one was considered lucky.
Good luck was also forecast for a bride who saw a chimney sweep on her wedding day.
Henry said sweeps also hope for a little bit of luck in what can be a dangerous job.
“A lot of people don’t realize that chimneys aren’t only tall, but they can put you at an odd angle,” he said. “You can’t have a fear of heights and you have to be pretty sure-footed.”
He uses specialized ladders to deal with uneven ground bases. They are equipped with rubber grips that can be adjusted individually to hold the ladder straight.
Henry said his only close calls have occurred when he used ladders provided by homeowners.
But despite the hazards, he said being a chimney sweep has been good to him.
“I always wanted to have my own business,” Henry said. “I wanted a really well established name and I think I’ve accomplished that. I enjoy working for myself and giving back to the community.”
— Contact Robert Igoe at rigoe@winchesterstar.com
Dirty job: Once a poor person's trade, "chimney sweep" is a proud calling for Shane Henry
By Robert Igoe
The Winchester Star
By Robert Igoe
The Winchester Star
 Shane Henry of McKay Chimney Specialists installs a cap on the chimney of a home east of Stephens City.
(Photo by Scott Mason) |
Winchester — For Shane Henry of McKay Chimney Specialists, a chimney is a lot like a stocking hanging beside one on Christmas Day:
You never know what’s going to be inside.
“Today, we’re going to be cleaning out a furnace flue,” he said recently as he put on his tuxedo coat and top hat and prepared to call at a home being renovated on Woodland Avenue.
“They may have birds in the chimney or some cracks, so we’re going to put a flue cap onto it and see how it goes.”
 Shane Henry wheels a large vacuum to a house where he was inspecting the chimney and damper.
(Photo by Scott Mason) |
No one knows what the next call will bring, but Henry said he can count on plenty of customers at this time of year.
“I started getting busy a month ago,” he said. “I have 26 messages on my cell phone today alone that I need to return. We’re very, very busy.
“The first cold snap we get is when people start thinking about us. But I get most of my business by returning calls and getting my name out there.”
Henry began his career as an apprentice relining chimneys, then began sweeping them.
But though he is proud to call himself a “chimney sweep,” he said his job extends beyond cleaning.
“The most common call we get is for inspection,” he said. “There are a lot of people who can clean chimneys, but they need to have them inspected to make sure there are no cracks, no animals. They have to be safe to use. That’s the most important thing.”
And Henry said oil-heated homes need this inspection just as much as homes with wood-burning fireplaces: “Although you may have an oil heater, it still uses an oil chimney for ventilation, and you need to get that checked, too.”
Henry suggested that homeowners with chimneys make the call to chimney maintenance professionals every summer, when fewer people need fast service.
He also recommended that fireplace owners burn as large a fire as possible in the fireplace, since it creates fewer contaminants.
Pressure-treated lumber and other such materials should not be burned in a fireplace, he added.
Henry said the coat and hat he wears on the job are a salute to the commonly portrayed uniform of the chimney sweep in the 19th and 20th centuries.
That uniform has a somber background. “During the turn of the century, chimney sweep was a very poor person’s trade,” he said. “Often, it was orphans who did it in England. Funeral directors would throw their old outfits onto the street for garbage pickup. Often, these kids would grab the coats and top hats, and that became the chimney sweep uniform.”
Besides being a low-paying profession for the children forced to undertake it, the work was very dangerous, since the children often suffered burns, injuries, and a form of cancer caused by the soot they were forced to inhale.
 Shane Henry carries a ladder to a customer’s house in Stephens City as he prepares to inspect its chimney.
(Photo by Scott Mason) |
After the passage of child labor laws and improvements in equipment, the image of the chimney sweep changed radically. They were portrayed as happy, kind- hearted dreamers in the popular movie “Mary Poppins,” and kissing or shaking hands with one was considered lucky.
Good luck was also forecast for a bride who saw a chimney sweep on her wedding day.
Henry said sweeps also hope for a little bit of luck in what can be a dangerous job.
“A lot of people don’t realize that chimneys aren’t only tall, but they can put you at an odd angle,” he said. “You can’t have a fear of heights and you have to be pretty sure-footed.”
He uses specialized ladders to deal with uneven ground bases. They are equipped with rubber grips that can be adjusted individually to hold the ladder straight.
Henry said his only close calls have occurred when he used ladders provided by homeowners.
But despite the hazards, he said being a chimney sweep has been good to him.
“I always wanted to have my own business,” Henry said. “I wanted a really well established name and I think I’ve accomplished that. I enjoy working for myself and giving back to the community.”
— Contact Robert Igoe at rigoe@winchesterstar.com