Technology at work
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Your chimney inspection process should do three things:
1) Help you collect all the necessary data from the home's installation. 2) Provide a format to organize the data and information. 3) Prepares you to create an exceptional customer presentation, whether in person, by email, or Zoom meetings. When data is collected consistently, and delivered with the customer's best interest in mind, even hard sell customers will consider your proposal. There are many parts or transitions to any installation. You are checking each one to verify its operating condition before continued use. |
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The Flue & Hearth Notes™ organizes the items listed in the annex and creates a path to complete a level 1 or Level 2 inspection. By categorizing the four most common installations seen in the field into specific checklists:
· Masonry Fireplaces · Prefabricated fireplaces, · Masonry Thimble Chimneys Serving an Appliance, · Prefabricated Chimney Serving an Appliance By providing a logical order to the inspection and how it relates to the customer's installation. A repeatable process where each team member can produce the same data and information. A format to satisfy the chimney sweep industry "Standard of care". This is a service driven process, based on the NFPA 211 Annex, to create a valued service to the customer. There are many parts or transitions to any installation. You are checking each one to verify its operating condition before continued use. Navigating through the NFPA 211 Chapter 15 and the attached Annex can be a bit daunting. They may appear complicated, but who said chimney inspections were easy! How Flue & Hearth Notes benefits your company:
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HAND IN HAND APPLICATIONS
Template where Urban Inspection Language© is placed.
Sample of Urban Inspection Language©
Sitting on the hearth extension (the area in front of the fireplace opening) we noted the bricks inside your firebox or hearth were built with the wrong brick type. This is common red brick, not designed for the temperatures created inside the fireplace. Continued operation will only worsen the existing spalling and cracking. This condition can potentially increase the temperature beyond the firebox to possible combustible materials hidden within the structure. We recommend not to use the fireplace until corrective actions are done. A viable option would be to replace the existing brick within the firebox with the appropriate fire brick so your enjoyment of the fireplace can continue.
The template, at left, is where the corresponding section of Urban Inspection Language© would be placed in the template for the Fillable PDF version.
Sitting on the hearth extension (the area in front of the fireplace opening) we noted the bricks inside your firebox or hearth were built with the wrong brick type. This is common red brick, not designed for the temperatures created inside the fireplace. Continued operation will only worsen the existing spalling and cracking. This condition can potentially increase the temperature beyond the firebox to possible combustible materials hidden within the structure. We recommend not to use the fireplace until corrective actions are done. A viable option would be to replace the existing brick within the firebox with the appropriate fire brick so your enjoyment of the fireplace can continue.
The template, at left, is where the corresponding section of Urban Inspection Language© would be placed in the template for the Fillable PDF version.
Flue & Hearth Notes Inspection Form Checklist
Each part of the Flue & Hearth Notes™, (FHN) checklists, templates, and language work with each other. Flue & Hearth Notes is not a relational database and does not require a monthly subscription fee.
The checklist, templates, and language are sold as a one-time fee. You get a master copy to use as a stand-alone or integrated into your existing system, whether paper or digital format. If you are using the old-style single fireplace form from distributors, this will be a big jump in your credibility. The check lists and templates can be purchased à
La Carte or customized with your company name and logo.
The checklist, templates, and language are sold as a one-time fee. You get a master copy to use as a stand-alone or integrated into your existing system, whether paper or digital format. If you are using the old-style single fireplace form from distributors, this will be a big jump in your credibility. The check lists and templates can be purchased à
La Carte or customized with your company name and logo.
One Form Doesn't Fit All Chimneys...
Items or question concerning masonry fireplaces are different from those referring to a wood stove connected to a prefabricated chimney (factory built). As an example, masonry fireplaces do not have a connector pipe and wood stove installation do not have smoke chambers. Each form drills down the items (Annex items) to be inspected. A sweep/tech can follow the form answering the yes/no questions quickly, creating an inspection path from the hearth to the top of the chimney cap. Along with service-related items (dimensions) creates an easy to understand format, which is commonly completed within 5-8 minutes.
Items or question concerning masonry fireplaces are different from those referring to a wood stove connected to a prefabricated chimney (factory built). As an example, masonry fireplaces do not have a connector pipe and wood stove installation do not have smoke chambers. Each form drills down the items (Annex items) to be inspected. A sweep/tech can follow the form answering the yes/no questions quickly, creating an inspection path from the hearth to the top of the chimney cap. Along with service-related items (dimensions) creates an easy to understand format, which is commonly completed within 5-8 minutes.
LEVEL OF INTENSITY: A SMALL FAULT TO MAJOR PROBLEMS
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There are certain times when a checklist can answer all the needed questions to complete the job when small faults are noted.
Others installations when more severe issues are noted may require more documentation in the form of a narrative report with photos and commentary for the customer to review. You may have to do a checklist, narrative report to put together a Scope of Repair (SOR) requiring more documentation and pricing. Flue and Hearth Notes™ can provide those needs, covering small to large projects. (FHN™ checklists, Templates, and Urban Inspection Language). Flue & Hearth Notes™ are flexible. |
Flue & Hearth Notes can be...
· used as a standalone checklist on NCR paper for quick and easy fill in with a receipt and signature box to record the transaction.
· used in conjunction with existing databases, creating custom templates for Smart Service, Service Pal etc
· used with Quickbooks
· used with Microsoft Office, and Microsoft 365 PC or Mac
· placed into a fillable PDF for digital devices (android/ iPad) using Adobe Acrobat DC Pro.
· multiple forms as a checklist.
· used to drop photos and text into a template with photo boxes and text boxes.
· resourced by using the Urban Inspection Language.( see Below) Over 400, ready to use paragraphs describing defects within an installation.
· used as a standalone checklist on NCR paper for quick and easy fill in with a receipt and signature box to record the transaction.
· used in conjunction with existing databases, creating custom templates for Smart Service, Service Pal etc
· used with Quickbooks
· used with Microsoft Office, and Microsoft 365 PC or Mac
· placed into a fillable PDF for digital devices (android/ iPad) using Adobe Acrobat DC Pro.
· multiple forms as a checklist.
· used to drop photos and text into a template with photo boxes and text boxes.
· resourced by using the Urban Inspection Language.( see Below) Over 400, ready to use paragraphs describing defects within an installation.
TEMPLATES FOR USE WITH THE URBAN INSPECTION LANGUAGE©
The illustration, below, shows how the Flue & Hearth Note Templates are predesigned pages. Each template page references a portion of the chimney and has text boxes that can be filled in on the PDF with the Urban Inspection Language©.
FHN™ Templates are predesigned pages referencing the four installation styles to help place photos and copy onto a page when creating a narrative report. Template pages are designed for each section of the checklist. Within each FHN checklist are sections indicated by a green box. Therefore, you can place photos into the template pages along with your own language or drop in Urban Inspection Language©
to fill in the preset text boxes. For example, Masonry fireplaces template pages: You can use all of them or only the sections that need better documentation, which a narrative report can supply. The fillable PDF is for use on an iPad or any laptop - Mac or PC. (PDFs will require a subscription to Adobe Acrobat DC Pro to operate appropriately). The rest of your inspection remains on the checklist. Full transparency is a well documented system.
If you are looking for a basic standalone form, they are available as a Word doc., Publisher doc, or a fillable PDF for use on an iPad or any laptop Mac or PC. (Again, PDFs will require a subscription to Adobe Acrobat DC Pro to operate appropriately.) Please see the template pages, below.
FHN™ Templates are predesigned pages referencing the four installation styles to help place photos and copy onto a page when creating a narrative report. Template pages are designed for each section of the checklist. Within each FHN checklist are sections indicated by a green box. Therefore, you can place photos into the template pages along with your own language or drop in Urban Inspection Language©
to fill in the preset text boxes. For example, Masonry fireplaces template pages: You can use all of them or only the sections that need better documentation, which a narrative report can supply. The fillable PDF is for use on an iPad or any laptop - Mac or PC. (PDFs will require a subscription to Adobe Acrobat DC Pro to operate appropriately). The rest of your inspection remains on the checklist. Full transparency is a well documented system.
If you are looking for a basic standalone form, they are available as a Word doc., Publisher doc, or a fillable PDF for use on an iPad or any laptop Mac or PC. (Again, PDFs will require a subscription to Adobe Acrobat DC Pro to operate appropriately.) Please see the template pages, below.
Urban Inspection Language© is comprised of 400 coded prewritten defect paragraphs following along with the checklist forms. The paragraphs can work with any existing inspection process you currently use.
The copy provides clarity to your customer by describing the defects in laymen terms, explaining where the fault is, the consequences of leaving it unfixed, (performance issues) and options to correct them. Here's an example - picture sitting on the hearth extension in front of the fireplace opening. We noted the bricks inside your firebox or hearth were built with the wrong brick type. This is common red brick, not designed for the temperatures created inside the fireplace. Continued operation will only worsen the existing spalling and cracking. This condition can potentially increase the temperature beyond the firebox to possible combustible materials hidden within the structure. We recommend not to use the fireplace until corrective actions are done. A viable option would be to replace the existing brick within the firebox with the appropriate fire brick so your enjoyment of the fireplace can continue.
Urban Inspection Language is downloadable into Microsoft Word, Publisher, Excel, Numbers, and Pages for Mac users. Other options include Quickbooks (by creating another Chart of Accounts and used within an estimate) or PDF. Urban Inspection Language works well in databases such as Smart Service/iFleet.
The copy provides clarity to your customer by describing the defects in laymen terms, explaining where the fault is, the consequences of leaving it unfixed, (performance issues) and options to correct them. Here's an example - picture sitting on the hearth extension in front of the fireplace opening. We noted the bricks inside your firebox or hearth were built with the wrong brick type. This is common red brick, not designed for the temperatures created inside the fireplace. Continued operation will only worsen the existing spalling and cracking. This condition can potentially increase the temperature beyond the firebox to possible combustible materials hidden within the structure. We recommend not to use the fireplace until corrective actions are done. A viable option would be to replace the existing brick within the firebox with the appropriate fire brick so your enjoyment of the fireplace can continue.
Urban Inspection Language is downloadable into Microsoft Word, Publisher, Excel, Numbers, and Pages for Mac users. Other options include Quickbooks (by creating another Chart of Accounts and used within an estimate) or PDF. Urban Inspection Language works well in databases such as Smart Service/iFleet.
The Coding in the checklist;
On the checklists, you will notice coding in the green section boxes on each installation form. You will see codes or letters. These are the referencing codes of the Urban Inspection Language™. For masonry fireplaces, all the coding begins with MF. If the coding is referring to a masonry fireplace firebox, you will see MFFB (masonry fireplace firebox) followed by numbers (1-13) indicating the paragraphs prewritten for this defect. For the prefabricated fireplace, all the defect language will begin with PF and so on.
On the checklists, you will notice coding in the green section boxes on each installation form. You will see codes or letters. These are the referencing codes of the Urban Inspection Language™. For masonry fireplaces, all the coding begins with MF. If the coding is referring to a masonry fireplace firebox, you will see MFFB (masonry fireplace firebox) followed by numbers (1-13) indicating the paragraphs prewritten for this defect. For the prefabricated fireplace, all the defect language will begin with PF and so on.
Training for flue and hearth notes
This guidebook covers all the checklists, section by section, with directions on what you should be looking for and why you are looking for it. The checklist includes a how-to guide with annotations from both the NFPA 211 and the IRC codebooks. Plus, with these annotations, added information can be referenced easily. If you wish to reference them, it will require purchasing both books and or downloading them as PDF files from their respective websites. We recommend you have these books.
Forms & Guides in Spanish:
We also have the guidebooks translated into Spanish along with each installation checklist, translated by a South American engineer, not Google translate! So, if your employees or your company services Hispanic neighborhoods, your forms can help them determine their customers needs without the language barrier. Plus, if you do not speak Spanish, you can fill out the form by doing it in English and redo the check boxes on the Spanish forms for them to understand.
We also have the guidebooks translated into Spanish along with each installation checklist, translated by a South American engineer, not Google translate! So, if your employees or your company services Hispanic neighborhoods, your forms can help them determine their customers needs without the language barrier. Plus, if you do not speak Spanish, you can fill out the form by doing it in English and redo the check boxes on the Spanish forms for them to understand.
Videos:
Since we have an indoor lab with displays built with defects. We can show you what to look for, and to the degree of urgency, it may need. Plus, we can add structures as the need arises. These videos will be on the website or in the form of webinars.
Coaching:
We can also have a coach from CVC Coaching, come to your location and work with you and your employees in creating the Flue & Hearth Notes™ inspection process that meets your personal or geographic situations. Please contact us for coaching on Flue & Hearth Notes™. You may contact CVC Coach
ng for their rates.
Since we have an indoor lab with displays built with defects. We can show you what to look for, and to the degree of urgency, it may need. Plus, we can add structures as the need arises. These videos will be on the website or in the form of webinars.
Coaching:
We can also have a coach from CVC Coaching, come to your location and work with you and your employees in creating the Flue & Hearth Notes™ inspection process that meets your personal or geographic situations. Please contact us for coaching on Flue & Hearth Notes™. You may contact CVC Coach
ng for their rates.
CONTACT: info@flueandhearthnotes.com