Epic Entrepreneurs

Building A Safer Hearth: How A Chimney Company Scales With Heart, Skill, And Grit with Ben Seidman

• Bill Gilliland

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Fires are meant to be comforting, not chaotic. We sit with Ben Seidman, owner of Flue Fighters Chimney Company in Asheville, to explore how modern chimney and fireplace work blends science, education, and leadership to keep homes truly safe. From full-camera inspections and roof waterproofing to code-heavy decisions inside the firebox, Ben explains why an “education-first” approach turns a service call into a clear plan homeowners can trust.

The conversation goes deeper than soot and ladders. Ben opens up about getting laid off, launching a business in 2023, and then getting hammered by Hurricane Helene right as peak season should have started. Calls dried up, layoffs followed, and he stepped away for National Guard activation. When the phones finally roared back, he rebuilt with intention—sending techs for CSIA certification, investing in continuing education and NFPA knowledge, and creating a culture where reviews, good or bad, are shared as lessons. The result is a team that thinks three steps ahead about scaffolding, permits, seasonality, and safety, not just the job at hand.

We talk candidly about common small business misconceptions, the myth of instant profit, and why taxes, overhead, and weather can stretch even the best plans. Ben shares how he hires for grit, communication, and problem-solving, then teaches the technical skills needed for high-stakes work on roofs and in crawl spaces. He outlines what’s next—adding a technician and an office manager, securing a building for training and meetings, and refining systems so the company scales without compromising safety.

If you care about home safety, trades professionalism, or how real small businesses survive shocks and grow stronger, this story will land. Subscribe, share with a friend who’s renovating or building, and leave a quick review to help more listeners find these practical, behind-the-scenes conversations. What part of home safety are you reconsidering after this one?

Guest Contact Info:

ben@flue-fighters.com

https://flue-fighters.com/

Thanks for Listening. You may contact me or our team at https://billgilliland.biz/

All the best!
Bill

Thanks for listening. Please hit the subscribe button, leave us a 5 star review, and share this podcast. You can reach me at williamgilliland@actioncoach.com or at https://billgilliland.biz/

All the best!

Bill

SPEAKER_01:

All right, welcome to this week's episode of Epic Entrepreneurs. I'm Cliff with Cray Filling and for Bill Gilliland with your local business training and coaching firm, Action Coach Business Growth Partners. I'm excited to have Ben Seidman with Flu Fighters as the focus for our Epic Entrepreneurs podcast episode today. So, Ben, please introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about yourself and your company and what primary products or services you offer the community.

unknown:

Sure.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, uh hey Cliff. Um thanks for this opportunity. Uh my name is Ben Seidman. I own Flu Fighters Chimney Company here in Asheville. Uh we have been around since the summer of 2023. So still pretty, pretty, pretty new, but I've been in the industry for about five years. And what we do is we're we're a turnkey chimney and fireplace trades company. Uh so our foot in the door is an inspection uh where we get into the house and we inspect the existing chimney and fireplace. I always relate it to a new patient visit at a doctor's office. So we're gonna look at every single aspect of the system, getting on the roof, looking at the waterproof capabilities of the chimney, the integrity of the chimney, then moving to the inside of the system, running a camera through the flu, then getting into the home and looking at the firebox or the appliance, whatever they may be useful at the time. Uh, and then I think our bread and butter is the education and the customer interaction. And I I kind of want to want to change the game as far as having a trades company come into your house. Um, oftentimes it gets very stuffy and awkward. Um, we want it to be a really genuine interaction uh with homeowners, you know, that you're inviting us into your home, and we want to respect that and acknowledge that. So it's it's very, very organic. Um, and we spend a lot of time educating the homeowner, letting them know what's going on with their system, what possibilities exist to to bring it to where they want it, uh, and just kind of lead them on their path to to getting a functioning system.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay. Yeah, love it, love it. So if you had to start your your business from square one, what would you do differently?

SPEAKER_00:

Oh, um that's a good question. Um, I don't know if I would necessarily do anything differently. I I think I think mistakes and lessons are part of the process, and without making those mistakes, um you you can't really learn. Um the biggest hiccup and the biggest hurdle for me has honestly been Helene, has been the storm from last year. But I mean, I I went to college for for wilderness leadership, so I I am not a businessman by any by any means. I'm from South Florida. Um so you know, chimneys and fireplaces was not something I grew up using. Um, so it's it's all new every day. I'm learning something new. Uh, and that's part of the process that I honestly cherish. I mean, it's it's it's hard at times, of course. Um I've made mistakes, and but I I believe in the process and trust the process. And um I I don't I don't think I would do anything differently.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay, okay. Yeah, and and and you said you're from South Florida. What a difference in in weather here. I you know, actually on the day we're filming this, it's really, really cold here in western North Carolina today. It's about 20 degrees outside. Um sure it's much different climate than than Florida, than South Florida, especially. Yeah. So um, yeah, so what have you what have your biggest learnings been as an owner since you started your business?

SPEAKER_00:

As of right now, you know, things that I'm going through this season, the biggest thing is I I want to please everybody. When I started this, you know, I I didn't start this company to to get rich. I I really cherish the relationships and the communication with with customers. Um so I think the the the biggest uh uh teachable moment for me thus far has been that I you can't please everybody um and being okay with that and and at the end of the day, if if I can you know go to bed knowing that I did my best, um that's that's really and and that everything that we have done is is I'm gonna do I'm doing air quotes because I'm gonna say the the safe word. Um, you know, at the end of the day, as long as I can make sure that everything that we are putting out there in people's homes is safe, then then I'm happy. Um, but people are people. We're I mean, I can't please everybody, and I'm I'm starting to learn that uh as as unfortunate as that is. Um it's just the nature of the beast, but um just being okay with with that and continuing to do what I think is the right thing. Um that's that's my biggest, my biggest lesson right now, at least in in this season, in this moment.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay, okay. And you kind of touched on it a little bit earlier. You said during the Hurricane Helene in 2024, you had some of your biggest learnings. Let's dig into that a little bit more. What would you say? I mean, what did you learn during that?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, um, I don't necessarily know if there were any lessons I may need to sit, you know, and think about what I could actually take away from Helene. Uh, but it, you know, Helene hit us in September, um right when our busy season would typically begin to build momentum. Um and I had just hired a new technician. So I had two technicians. I had an office uh manager working for me when Helene hit. Um so when Helene hit, the phone stopped ringing. Um we weren't getting any any calls to to do repair work because everyone was focusing on more important things, you know, their roof, their their house, their cars, their you know, everything else. Uh, and then pushing into the the meat of of that season. So November, December, January, it was slow. I I you know, I had to lay off one of my new technicians, I had to lay off my office manager, which was it crushed me to do that. Uh and then my first technician, he actually ended up leaving in late March or early April again, just because the backlog wasn't there. Where, you know, during those busy cold months, we would start building a backlog for spring, and we just didn't have that backlog. So when spring rolled around, he was just like, hey man, I just I I I need more money, I need more consistency. And I I don't blame him at all, but he he left. Uh, and unfortunately, two or three weeks right after he left, the floodgates opened. Everything kind of got back to normal a little bit. The phone was ringing off the hook. Um, so I had to, I hired two new guys. Um, luckily, my wife's schedule kind of leveled out a little bit, so she came on as my office administrator. Uh, so it did work organically. Uh, I still have those two new technicians. I sent them to school and got them certified. Um I I guess now that we're having this conversation, the lesson from this is just kind of having faith, staying the course, um, knowing that you know, for every down there's an up, I guess. Um and just just trusting, having faith, I guess. Um, but that that was that was hard. Um, and I guess another big piece of that is I'm in the National Guard. So once me and my family had our basic needs met, once our power and our water was restored, I then jumped on a activation to go to Hot Springs and help out. Uh, so then I was gone from the business for an additional two weeks. So I was trying to work remotely and send, you know, try to create leads and create jobs for my team while I was away. It was very challenging. Um, but we survived and we're we're doing better than we have in the past. So nice. Uh yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, okay. That's good to hear. Yeah. So what are some common misconceptions about running a business, would you say?

SPEAKER_00:

It's definitely not for everybody. I I don't I think people know that. I think if if it was easy, more people would do it. Um I was kind of my hand was kind of forced into starting a business. I kind of have an odd, sad story as far as how I got to where I am. Um, I was working for another chimney company and was laid off for reasons that we don't necessarily need to get into. Um, but my hand was forced. You know, it had um I had always wanted to work for myself, but the thought of it was terrifying, you know, being starting from scratch and just having to learn everything. But how the cards were laid out for me, um, it just seemed organic and seemed like the right thing to do. And I mean, it was hard and it was challenging, and there's moments that you know just sucked. Um, but if you just do it, you you can get through it. So I mean, miss misconceptions, I mean, it's hard. I think everybody knows it's hard. Um you're definitely not making money right away. You're definitely in the red or breaking even uh for the first little bit. Um, so there's definitely I guess I guess the financial aspect is is a common misconception. People think that when you start a business, you're just gonna be raking in the cash, but insurance and bills and you know, little overhead costs and materials and all these things that it adds up quickly. And then Uncle Sam comes around and and takes what's his, and that was that was an eye-opener, taxes.

SPEAKER_01:

Yep, no, no, I get you. So, how do you handle taking vacations while running a business?

SPEAKER_00:

Um, I think you just have to you know prioritize yourself. Um, I'm one of the reasons behind starting my business was I wanted that work-life balance that I now know doesn't necessarily exist. But I have these ideals, I guess, that um like I wake up in the morning, take my kid to school, have coffee with my wife, and you know, kind of set my own schedule. Then because I'm a people pleaser, I very quickly take away from my own time to meet the needs of everybody else. Um, but during this busy season, my wife forced me. She said, Hey, from Christmas Eve to the day after New Year's, you're gonna you're gonna take off. Um, and I and I did to to the extent of my ability, but because I have a very hungry group of guys who want to work, you know, I have to be present for them. Uh, so we we couldn't necessarily leave town. Not that we really wanted to, but um I think you just we just do it. You know, we we find a time on the schedule where we think we can get away and we just block it off and we just do it. Um again, I'm so thankful for my group of guys that are hungry, that are smart, and they just wanna they just want to keep charging. So um I make sure that I brief them thoroughly on on what's coming up and what to do, and they just continue to knock it out of the park and um make my job a whole lot easier. Um, so I think you know, have just having a good group of guys and just prioritizing yourself and your health and your family. Um, you just you just have to do it sometimes. It's never gonna be perfect, you're never gonna be ready for it. Um, but you you need to take those breaks. So just just doing it. Okay, okay.

SPEAKER_01:

And what have you attributed to your growth so far?

SPEAKER_00:

My team. Um, I have three technicians now, two of which are CSIA certified, so that's the Chimney Safety Institute of America. I got them certified almost right away upon coming on board with me. Um, but they're they're hungry. Um, they're young, they they want to work, they want to learn, they want to please. Um, and I I would not be where I am without them. Even even my my last technician who's no longer with me, you know, um I pride myself on being a very real, genuine person. I don't I don't really sugarkill anything. I wear my heart in my sleeves. Um, I tell people if I'm struggling, I ask questions if I need help. And I think that is well received and rare in this day and age. Um and I I think my team values that. Uh, I encourage my team to do the same for me. Um just an open book. Um, you know, if they had need help, if they have questions, I don't want anyone to be afraid to come to me. Um so I just just creating a a nice environment for them to feel safe, um, to where they can do right by me, do right by themselves. And I yeah, I would not be here without them. So they're my number one. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay, okay. So yeah, you've talked a lot about your text during the conversation. So, you know, going into that a little bit more, what qualities do you look for? Do you look for anything particular when you're looking for your employees?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, uh, I guess, you know, stemming from my military background, I want people who are solution-oriented. The work we do is not beautiful work, it's it's hard. It's we're on really sketchy roofs sometimes at heights. We're in crawl spaces on our belly, busting flu tiles, using power tools, getting dirty. It it's it's miserable work at times. Um, so I want people who are gritty who understand that we work hard, but then we play hard as well. I I treat my guys really well. Um so I want, you know, gritty, septuit-ness, um solution-oriented, you know, problems are gonna pop up. But if they come to me with the problem and then, hey, this is what I'm thinking, this is my solution, and then we can kind of find holes in that. Um just, you know, going above and beyond, seeing, you know, two, three, four steps ahead of where we are, that way we can make sure that uh just everything falls in place as it should. Um we're in a range of different homes, and in a we've worked with a range of clientele, anywhere from you know, small, you know cottages, um, one bedroom homes to seven to ten million dollar homes in in Biltmore Village. Uh, so obviously everyone needs to be treated, but there's a different kind of communication that needs to be done between those, I guess, different demographics. Uh so people who can read a room, know when to joke, what know when to be serious, um, treat everybody we meet with respect. Um, those are the kind of people that I that I'm looking for. Uh that have values and ethics. Um we're again, we're I I think people in the trades, or people think of the trades kind of in a negative light, um, just being dirty and impolite and gritty and just all that. And that's just not that I guess that's the script that I want to flip. Uh, we're educated, we're smart, we're intelligent, we're husbands and fathers and brothers and all this stuff. We're we're human at the end of the day. Um I lost a train of thought there, but um, yeah, you know, if if you have the soft skills of being a good, genuine human, that's that's what I want. I can teach you the ins and outs of being a chimney technician because nobody knows anything about chimneys. But if you have the the basic building blocks of being a good person, uh I can teach you all the hard skills.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay, gotcha. All right, so now we're gonna head into the quick fire round. So basically what's uh gonna happen here is I'm going to say a word, one word, and then you just give me kind of the first thing that comes to mind when you think about running your business, when you hear that word. Um the first word is education.

SPEAKER_00:

Oh, absolutely number one. Um do you want me to expand upon that, or do you just want a great. Yeah, that'd be great. Yeah, so our industry is really unique. It's a very dangerous thing what we're doing. You know, we're putting, we're making it so people can put fires in their home, and we want that fire to be contained and stay in that one space, in that fireplace. Our industry is not, there's really no checks and balances. You know, to be an electrician or a plumber, you need to a trade school, you need a certification, you need a license, you need to, you know, maybe pull permits or whatever. For us, that doesn't exist. You could just buy a van, go to Home Depot, buy a chimney sweeping kit, you know, slap some stickers on your van, and boom, you're in business, you're a chimney sweep. Um, but the industry is is changing. We're trying to become more legitimate by creating these schools. So I think it was in the 70s, the CSIA, there it is again, the Chimney Safety Institute of America was was founded. Um, don't quote me on when exactly it came around. I think it was the 70s, but um, we're starting to learn more. We're starting to use science and technology to learn more about clearances and draft and pressure uh in inside the home. Um, so there's so much more that goes into a chimney and a fireplace than what people think. All too almost every day we go into a home and we tell you know, folks, hey, unfortunately, because of this whatever going on in your system, um, it is now not up to code. And I guess you know, codes change as well. Um, and unfortunately, nothing is grandfathered in. We can't grandfather in the fact that we now know more about something and how your chimney was initially constructed is no longer safe. Like we can't ignore that. So that grandfathering clause just doesn't exist in what we do. Um, but I spend a lot of time, a lot of money getting my guys educated. We need, you know, continuing education units to maintain our certifications. Um, my guys are CSIA certified sweeps. Um here next in two weeks, we are all going to go to an inspection class. We're not going to get a certification to be inspectors, um, but they're gonna at least learn NFPA standards and codes. Um I am a certified chimney and fireplace inspector through an organization called FIRE, um, which is what gosh, that was a five-day, 12 hours a day course, just a fire hose worth of information. Um, so I pride myself on education, make sure that my guys are educated. That way, again, we can educate the homeowners. Again, that's that's kind of where I think our bread and butter is, I think that's what sets us apart from all the other chimney companies in the area, is the fact that we sit down with the customer and let them know hey, this is what's going on. This is what happens if you don't fix it, this is what we can do to fix it, these are your options, uh, you know, and then kind of guide them on that. Path. So education is absolutely number one for us. Okay. Okay. Planning. Planning. Planning. Um. Yeah. Um, so how we operate is we we go, we do an inspection, we then provide an estimate. Um, and you know, once the customer approves, we send a deposit and then we order material. So from that point on, we need to, or I guess really the planning starts at the inspection. I tell my guys all the time, when you're inspecting, you need to be wearing multiple hats. You need to be wearing your inspector hat, but you also need to be wearing the hat of the installer and planning how you're going to do whatever job you're proposing to the customer. So planning, okay, where am I going to put a ladder? Where am I, you know, will a ladder work? Do we need to lift? Do we need scaffolding? Where is it going to go? Do we need to pull a permit or something? Do we need um to run electric or do we need to run gas to the fireplace if they're converting from wood to gas? Um, and then once a job is approved, you know, ordering material, getting them on the calendar, planning, you know, I guess seasonality, you know, where we are right now in this in this cold season where I mean we're in a temperate rainforest, so it's always a little wet. But all of my waterproofing jobs I'm having to push out and my chimney rebuilds, I'm having to push those out to spring, um, just because we don't have the the weather for it right now. So yeah, planning is is paramount as well. Inspiration. Inspiration. Um I pull inspiration from a little bit of everything. Um, you know, I I have a business coach, so you know, she inspires me to do better, and uh seeing where she is and how quickly she got there is is inspiring. Um I'm big into fitness, so I'm inspired by um, you know, some athletes. Um I um and I guess you know, as as a as a father of a four-year-old, I want to make sure that I'm setting a good example to inspire him. Um, I don't necessarily care what he does in life, as long as you know I help inspire and build those those soft skills for him, you know, to be a good person. Um, and I guess similarly for my team, you know, every time I get a good review or a bad review, I send that to my team to let them know, you know, where our shortcomings were, what we could have done differently, um to inspire them to learn from their mistakes. And again, like kind of you the first question you asked me, to get to get to success, I mean you have you have to fail. You have to, there's a yin and a yang. There's for every up, there's a down. Um so you can't ignore that, you can't hide that. It's it's all part of the process. So being honest and genuine, I think I I hope to inspire my guys to to kind of be the same and just appreciate um to appreciate that. Okay, okay, love it.

SPEAKER_01:

Commitment.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. Um that makes me think of, you know, the only thing you have in life is your word. Um, so once something leaves your mouth, you are committed to that. Um again, we're all human. I have definitely not lived up and met that on occasion, but I acknowledge that. And I I own my faults almost too much. Um, but just committing to getting better, committing to whatever to whatever goals you're setting. Um I without commitment, I think you're just wishy-washy.

SPEAKER_01:

No, no, I agree. So, what words of advice would you offer to other business owners who are looking to grow?

SPEAKER_00:

Stay the course. Um it's not easy. No one, you know, I I don't again, I don't think anyone thinks running a business is easy. Um but just stay the course. It if you just keep pouring into your business and pouring into yourself and learning, um eventually you will get to the point where I don't think things aren't necessarily easier. You just get stronger, you just get better at adapting, maybe, and and your your skin gets thicker. Um but just keep going. Um yeah, I I've I'm not a quitter. I don't I don't believe in quitting. You know, there's I guess there's a point where you realize that something's just not working and you have to pivot, but um man, I I just stay the course, just keep going. Just just keep getting up. Just keep getting up, keep showing on up.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay, okay. So what would you say is the next big thing for flu fighters?

SPEAKER_00:

Next big thing. Um, so yeah, we're three technicians, four including myself, and then my wife is is the office um manager, kind of HR, but she needs to step out of that role to focus on our on our kid and our little homestead that we have. Um, so I need to hire a new technician. I need to hire a new office manager, and then we need a building. Um, we just added on to our fleet, excuse me, uh, I think it was October-ish. We bought a new truck. I just got it wrapped. So now, you know, our our capacity has doubled, but now we need a building. Um, so I have a couple feelers out to get a to get a building um where we can start having meetings and and you know more consistent trainings for the guys. Um so I think I think that's next is a building and then a couple new new additions to the team.

SPEAKER_01:

Perfect, perfect. Yeah, since you're hiring, what's the best way for someone to find or or get in touch with you?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, um just shoot us an email. So my it's simple. It's Ben at FluHyphen Fighters. It's f L U E-fighters uh dot com. Or excuse me, that's yeah, Ben at flu dash fighters.com. Um yeah.

unknown:

Okay.

SPEAKER_01:

Any social media?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, yeah, of course. Yeah, we're we're on social media, Instagram and Facebook. Not as active as I'd like to be right now. I'm the one managing it, but you know, part part of the job description for anybody who wants to come be uh work in the office is is managing some of that social media content.

SPEAKER_01:

Fantastic. No, I appreciate that. You know, thank you so much for being a part of the community and all that you're doing. We certainly wish you continued success. And I really thank you for coming on today. It's a wonderful conversation.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, great. Thank you, Cliff. This is a good up good opportunity.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, thank you.