The Sweep | Gillespie Chimney Sweeps – Ex-Military Chimney Sweep, Congleton

Daniel Gillespie of Gillespie Chimney Sweeps holding a traditional cane sweeping brush — Fig. 01 — Dan Gillespie, Congleton

The founder

Meet Dan Gillespie.

Some habits never leave you. Turning up on time. Preparing properly. Finishing what you started, to a standard you'd be happy to have inspected. Dan carried those out of his military service — and they became the whole shape of the business.

Based in Congleton, he trained and registered with the National Association of Chimney Sweeps — the oldest trade body in the profession — and kitted the van out with modern rotary sweeping gear, HEPA dust control and CCTV inspection equipment. Old trade, current methods.

It's genuinely one man. Ring the number and Dan answers. Open the door and it's Dan standing there — presentable, on time, and treating the room like it's his own front room.

Dan Gillespie Founder · Congleton

"Good enough was never good enough."

"In the forces nobody accepted 'that'll do'. I sweep every chimney the same way — as if someone's coming behind me to inspect it. Usually the only inspector is the homeowner. That's exactly who I want to impress."

Dan Gillespie · Gillespie Chimney Sweeps

№ 02Before the sweep

Before the brushes, the forces.

The standards on this page were not written for a website. They were issued.

Dan Gillespie in British Army uniform before starting Gillespie Chimney Sweeps — Fig. 02 — In uniform

Long before the van and the brushes, Dan spent his career in the British Army. That is where the habits on this page come from — kit checked before it is needed, a time given being a time kept, and a job finished to a standard somebody else could come along and inspect.

Chimney sweeping turned out to suit all of it. It is practical, it matters, and there is no hiding whether you did it properly. The uniform changed. The way the day runs did not.

The van still gets loaded the night before. The appointment time is still a time, not a window. And the room still gets checked over before he leaves it.

Dan Gillespie visiting a battlefield memorial in South Africa — Fig. 03 — Off duty, South Africa

№ 03Standards

What ex-military standards mean in practice.

Three words appear on the badge. Below is what each one means for the hour Dan spends in your home.

Discipline

A firm appointment time, not a four-hour window — and it's kept. If something ever shifts you'll hear about it before you have to ask.

Pride

Clean uniform, tidy van, boot covers at the door. Dust sheets down before a single rod goes up, and the room checked over before Dan leaves it.

Service

If the chimney doesn't need work you get told so. If it does, you get the reason, the options and the price before anything happens. Nothing invented on the doorstep.

№ 04Process

How a visit works.

The same six steps, in the same order, on every job — so you know exactly what is happening in your home and when.

Book & confirm

Call, message or use the form. You get a firm date, a firm time and the exact price before anything is agreed.

Protect & prepare

Floor coverings and sheets down first, the appliance sealed, the HEPA dust-control system set up — all before sweeping starts.

Sweep & inspect

The full flue swept with professional rotary equipment, then checked for draw and blockages. Anything odd gets flagged and explained on the spot.

Smoke draw test

A smoke draw test confirms the flue is pulling properly and venting where it should. That's the proof, not the promise.

Certificate issued

Where applicable you get a recognised sweeping certificate for your records — the document most home insurers ask to see.

Left spotless

Soot and debris removed, sheets lifted, room returned exactly as found. You'd never know a sweep had been — except the fire draws better.

№ 05Credentials

Registered, insured, accountable.

The credentials that sit behind every appointment.

NACS Registered

Member of the National Association of Chimney Sweeps. Work carried out to recognised industry standards, with certificates insurers accept across the UK.

CSCS Card Holder

Dan carries a current CSCS card — the construction industry's proof of health, safety and competence training. Site access without the paperwork dance, and the same standards indoors.

Fully Insured

Comprehensive public liability cover protects your property from the moment Dan arrives until the job is signed off and the van doors shut.

Owner-Run

No subcontractors, no rotating faces. The person who quotes the job does the job — and is the person you ring if anything's ever not right.

About Gillespie
Chimney Sweeps.