Chimney chase repair with a written estimate in Edgewood

Front and back flashing that follows the shingle maker

The downslope face of a chase gets an apron flashing that lies over the shingles, and the upslope face gets a back flashing or a cricket. Under R905.2.8.4, chimney flashing on a shingle roof is applied following the asphalt shingle manufacturer's instructions.

So the details can change with the shingle brand, and a repair should follow the instructions for the roof you actually have. A bead of tar along the joint is not flashing. It usually hides a gap rather than closing it, and it can trap water against the siding.

We look at the apron and back flashing whenever the lower chase siding is off. Your estimate states whether that flashing is reused, replaced or left for a roofer, so nobody assumes someone else handled it. If the apron has been caulked or tarred over, the old material comes off so the flashing can be judged properly.

A written estimate that names every layer

A chase repair quote that only says repair chase leaves too much open. Our written estimates break the job into the layers of the wall, so you can see what is being replaced and why.

Each line carries its own price. If the cover needs replacing, it appears as a separate job, and so does any roofing a roofer handles. That makes it easy to compare quotes on the same work and to see what the repair includes at your Edgewood address.

A stucco finish is broken out into barrier layers, lath and coats instead of a single stucco line. Access, protection and cleanup are listed too, so the total has nothing tucked inside it. A typical estimate covers these lines.

• Siding, stucco or trim, by face and area
• Water-resistive barrier and flashing
• Sheathing and framing, with the expected extent
• Cover replacement or roofing as separate lines

Cables and wiring routed through a chase

A chimney chase can look like a handy path to the roof. Cable, satellite and low-voltage lines sometimes get run up through it, and an outlet or light may be mounted on its outside wall with wiring behind. Those lines are often added long after the chimney went in.

DuraVent's manual, for example, tells installers to keep electrical wiring away from all chimneys and lists wiring among the combustible materials that stay outside the required clearance. Wires resting on the pipe or stapled across the air space have to be moved.

With the chase open, we flag any wiring in the clearance space. Low-voltage cables are rerouted clear of the pipe. Anything on a household circuit is left for an electrician and noted as a separate item on your Edgewood estimate. Satellite mounts screwed into the chase get checked for leaks at the screw holes.

Old patch jobs that hide rot

Many chases have been patched before. Caulk smeared over split siding, roofing tar along the base, a coat of paint over soft wood or a strip of trim nailed over a gap can all hide damage for a while. Some of these fixes went on quickly after a storm, and others were left by a previous owner.

The patch often traps water and makes the rot behind it worse. Tar at the base can block the drainage path, and a trim strip over a split can hold water against the board.

Our technicians look closely at old repairs and probe around them. When a patch is hiding soft wood, we take it off and repair what is behind it. Each old patch we plan to remove gets its own line on your Edgewood estimate. If an old patch is sound and covers sound wood, it can stay.