1. Which organizations inspect chimneys?
Inspection, maintenance, and repair of smoke and ventilation ducts (SVD) are carried out by specialized organizations (so-called stove repairers) that have a permit for these works from the State Labor Service of Ukraine.
The safety rules for gas supply systems in Ukraine oblige owners and balance holders of housing to check the condition and, if necessary, repair smoke and ventilation ducts, with the execution of relevant inspection reports.
But chimney maintenance is not a monopoly service. Therefore, the homeowner has the right to independently choose a provider for the PEC inspection.
2. Does the Kharkiv branch of Gazmerezhi provide chimney maintenance services?
No. The Kharkiv branch of Gazmerezh does not provide chimney inspection services, nor does it carry out chimney maintenance and repair.
3. Why check chimneys at all?
Carbon monoxide, which accumulates in a home due to faulty chimneys or a non-functioning ventilation system, is deadly to humans. This gas has no odor, so a person does not immediately feel the danger.
- When the concentration of carbon monoxide in a room is 0.1%, after an hour a person begins to experience headaches, dizziness, and loses consciousness.
- At a concentration of 0.5%, fatal poisoning of a person can occur in 20-30 minutes.
- At a carbon monoxide concentration of 1%, after a few breaths, a person loses consciousness, and after 1-2 minutes, the person experiences severe or fatal poisoning.
4. How can I be sure of the reliability of the chimney inspection contractor?
When determining the contractor for chimney inspection work, it is worth checking:
- availability of permission from the selected organization to inspect smoke and ventilation ducts;
- availability of service certificates for employees of the selected organization who will perform the work;
- approved list of works and estimated cost of works.
It is also worth monitoring the provision of services in your home, according to the list and estimate of work.
After inspecting the smoke and ventilation ducts, the contractor draws up an inspection report.
5. Can chimney sweeps turn off the gas in a house?
The specialized organization that inspects the PEC does not have the authority to shut off the gas supply to the house.
In the case of faulty chimneys, a specialized organization draws up an inspection report with a conclusion about the malfunction, warns residents about the dangers of using gas, and transfers the report to the gas company.
Gas engineers stop the gas supply to the home while the chimney is being repaired by a specialized organization and the homeowner.
6. What are the deadlines for chimney inspections?
- chimneys of heating stoves, gas-fired water heaters and heating boilers that operate seasonally - at least once a year (before the start of the heating season), and those that operate year-round - twice a year (in spring and autumn);
- chimneys of heating and cooking stoves – at least twice a year: before the beginning and after the end of the heating season;
- chimneys from gas instantaneous and storage gas water heaters for hot water supply, restaurant gas stoves (depending on the material) - at least once every 6 months (brick, brick and asbestos-cement, brick and ceramic chimneys) and at least once a year (metal - with a wall thickness of at least 3 mm, asbestos-cement, ceramic and heat-resistant concrete).
Ventilation ducts are checked at the same time as smoke ducts.