Local smoke chamber repair for Crescent Park fireplaces

Slope limits for sloped and corbelled walls

The same section limits how far chamber walls may lean. With prefabricated chamber linings, or with walls that are rolled or sloped, the inside surface may tilt up to 45 degrees off plumb and no further. Corbelled walls may not step in more than 30 degrees from vertical.

A wall that leans too far can make smoke hang against it instead of rising. A thick refractory coat, built up where the wall is steepest, is one way to bring the slope back toward the limit. We explain whether your chamber is a candidate before recommending it.

Cleaning comes before any coating

A chamber coating bonds to clean masonry. One maker's data sheet states that before its coating goes in, the smoke chamber must be thoroughly cleaned to remove all tar glazed creosote and soot from the internal walls.

We follow that order on every chamber. The walls are brushed, the shelf is cleared and the surface is checked by hand before any mixing starts. If cleaning uncovers more damage than the first look showed, we stop and talk it through with you before going further.

Working from the flue down

Those directions begin the coat up high, beside the flue liner, and bring it down toward the damper. Beginning at the top keeps fresh material from dropping onto finished areas below.

Access decides how this happens in each fireplace. Some chambers let us reach the top through the damper opening, while others are easier from above. We explain the route your chamber allows before the job, and it is written into the plan.

When the damper has to come out

A throat damper can block the way into the chamber. The coating directions we follow even mention leaving the damper off during curing so air can reach the new coat. On some fireplaces, the plate comes out easily and goes back in afterward.

On others, the damper is rusted in place or damaged, and removing it means replacing it. We check this at the inspection and tell you which case you have. Any damper parts are written up separately, with the reason explained.

Other parts that affect how a fireplace draws

When a fireplace draws poorly, the chamber is one suspect among several. The size of the opening compared with the flue, a damper that does not open fully, a short or blocked flue and a cold chimney at start-up can all play a part.

We look at the whole passage during the free inspection instead of assuming the chamber is at fault. If another part is the main issue, we say so and scope that repair separately. The chamber gets work only when it needs it.

• Opening size compared with the flue
• Damper that does not open fully
• Flue height, blockage or liner damage