Tried saving money on a cheap brush kit and it snapped mid sweep

I picked up one of those bargain rod kits from a hardware store in Akron last month, like $30 for the whole thing. Third job of the day, I'm working a big masonry flue, and the rod just broke in half about halfway up. Had to fish out the brush and the broken piece with a shop vac attachment. Anybody else had a cheap rod fail on them or am I just unlucky?

2 comments

2 Comments

benk261mo agoTop Commenter

Why is everybody acting like a broken brush rod is some kind of career ending disaster... It's a cheap tool that broke, that's what they do. I've snapped a few rods over the years and it's never been more than a minor annoyance, just pull it out and move on. Half the time the cheap ones are fine for normal use anyway.

olivia_murphy1mo ago

Honestly, I get what you're saying but I think people are overreacting a bit. Tbh, a brush rod isn't something that's supposed to break after a few uses unless you're really hammering on it or got a dud. Ngl, I've snapped a couple myself and it was just a quick fix, not a whole production. Maybe these guys are using the wrong size or putting too much force on it. It's not like the tool is a total loss if one part gives out, you know? Sounds like a lot of drama over something that's pretty normal if you use gear hard enough.