My old ash vacuum gave up the ghost halfway through a big cleanout

I was finishing a full sweep on a huge brick chimney in the old part of town last Thursday. The fireplace had not been touched in years, and I had a solid three buckets of fine soot and ash to deal with. I went to fire up my trusty 6-gallon ash vac, the one I've had for almost eight years, and it just made a sad whirring noise and died. No smoke, no smell, just done. I had to get creative fast. I ended up using heavy duty trash bags and a small hand dustpan to get it all out, which added a solid extra hour to the job. It was a mess, but I got it done. Has anyone else had a main piece of gear just quit on them in the middle of a job? What's your go-to backup plan?

2 comments

2 Comments

reese_thompson7410d ago

Honestly that sounds like a total waste of time to me.

fiona_webb10d ago

That "creative fast" backup plan is exactly right. I keep a couple of those contractor grade bags and a cheap dustpan in every vehicle now, just in case.