Chimney Care Company's Blog

Chimney masonry and brick repair

Is the look of your chimney bringing down your home’s curb appeal and value? Over time, chimney masonry can deteriorate, causing your home to look old and in disrepair. On top of that, dilapidated chimney masonry can put your home at risk for water damage. The unsightly cracked and crumbling masonry can allow water to seep into your home through your chimney. If your chimney’s masonry is showing signs of wear, it’s time to address your deteriorating chimney masonry with masonry and brick repair. The chimney masonry experts at the Chimney Care Co. can help! We can restore your chimney with masonry and brick repair; we deal with common repairs, as well as will full-on chimney rebuilds to restore your chimney’s look and function.

Tuckpointing

Stones and bricks can last for decades. Often, the mortar that holds the bricks and stones together breaks down long before the bricks or stones. Crumbling chimney mortar looks unsightly and can degrade the look of your home. Crumbling masonry also opens up the opportunity for water to enter into the chimney. Over time, that water can further degrade the mortar and the masonry. If crumbling chimney mortar is let go for too long, it can even compromise the strength of your chimney structure. Fortunately, there is an easy fix for crumbling chimney mortar: Tuckpointing. Tuckpointing involves removing the old, softened chimney mortar and replacing it with a fresh coat of mortar. This restores the strength of the chimney and freshens its look.

Chimney crown repair

Like chimney mortar, the chimney crown often breaks down before other masonry materials. Chimney crowns will break down especially quickly if the crown was constructed from the wrong type of material, which happens more frequently than it should. Cracks in the chimney crown allow water to enter the top of your chimney. From there, it can damage your chimney flue or even seep into the surrounding layers of your home, causing mold or rot. Rebuilding your chimney crown can help protect your chimney and your home from water damage.

Full or partial chimney rebuilds

If water is allowed to damage chimney masonry for too long, the damage can become so severe that chimney reconstruction is in order. A part or all of your chimney might need to be reconstructed if the bricks, stones, and mortar have cracked and crumbled to form an unsightly and irreparable mess, or if they have degraded to the point that the chimney structure is no longer sound and poses a danger to the home.

Don’t let your damaged chimney masonry go unaddressed; call the chimney masonry experts at the Chimney Care Co.! We can assess your chimney’s masonry to determine what type of repair is needed, and we can repair your chimney’s masonry to restore the look and function of your chimney and to save your home’s curb appeal.

Masonry Repair To Your Chimney

Summer will soon be drawing to a close. Soon, homeowners will begin to prepare their fireplaces and chimneys for the fall. Have you noticed damage to your chimney? If your chimney sweep notices damage during your annual cleaning and inspection, you could be in store for some masonry chimney repair. Know that masonry does break down over time, even with the best care. Additionally, there are some common masonry repairs that are performed time and time again.

Tuckpointing

Tuckpointing, or repointing, is perhaps one of the most common masonry chimney repairs. The good news is that it’s an incredibly gratifying repair to have performed on your chimney. Not only does it restore the structural integrity of your chimney, but it also restores the overall appearance of your chimney. Tuckpointing involves removing damaged, crumbling mortar from in between the masonry joints of your chimney and repairing it with fresh mortar to strengthen the chimney structure.

Chimney Crown Repair

A chimney crown, the masonry top to your chimney, takes a lot of abuse. As the chimney crown protects the rest of the chimney from water, the crown itself comes into contact with precipitation. This can damage the crown’s masonry! On top of that, many chimney crowns were not properly constructed to start, allowing chimney leaks. They can also cause the chimney crown to break down prematurely. If your chimney crown is cracked, crumbly, or improperly constructed, you will be in need of a chimney crown repair.

Relining

Inside your chimney, the masonry flue tiles can crack or crumble. This can be caused from the extreme heat of your fireplace or from contact with moisture. Eventually, your chimney will need to be relined, either with a stainless steel chimney liner or with a specialized poured cement.

Firebox Reconstruction

Just like the tiles in your chimney liner, the bricks that line your firebox can crack or crumble from exposure to heat and moisture. If the cracks in your firebricks grow too wide, your firebox will need to be reconstructed so that it continues to protect your home from the fires built within.

Chimney Rebuild

Has your chimney has been neglected too long? If crumbling mortar and bricks weren’t replaced or cracks were left unattended, your chimney structure can begin to fail! A failing chimney structure can damage your overall home structure or leave your home open to the risk of a chimney fire. If your chimney structure has failed, you might require a complete or partial chimney rebuild.

If your chimney requires any of these repairs, or if your chimney is due for its annual sweeping and inspection, call the Chimney Care Co. to schedule your chimney today! We can spot and perform any needed masonry chimney repairs and have your chimney ready to operate safely this fall.