Loose tiles and cracked hearths fixed in Hibiscus

Keeping a good base under a new surface

Not every hearth replacement needs demolition to the floor. When the concrete or masonry base is sound, thick enough and properly supported, the finish can be removed and renewed on top of it.

We confirm the base before promising that shortcut, because a new finish cannot fix what lies under it. Saving a good base usually shortens the job and reduces dust, and the estimate shows it as its own step.

• Base checked for soundness
• Thickness confirmed
• Support confirmed
• Finish renewed on top

Cracks after furniture or a heavy load

A dropped television, a slid piano or a moved cabinet can crack hearth tile in a single moment. Impact cracks usually radiate from one point, which makes them easy to tell apart from cracks caused by the base.

Impact damage over a solid base is usually a tile replacement. We still check the base under the point of impact, because a hard enough blow can crack the bed too, and it is better to find that before the new tile goes down.

A hearth damaged by water from above

Water that runs down a chimney can end up in the firebox and spread across the hearth. Stains, loose tiles and a musty smell in the fireplace are the usual clues.

Repairing the hearth first and the leak second wastes money, since the water comes back. We identify the path, recommend the leak repair as its own job and plan the hearth work after it, so the new finish goes onto a dry base.

• Water stains at the back of the firebox
• Loose tiles near the opening
• A musty smell in the fireplace
• White deposits on brick or grout

Hearths in front of corner fireplaces

A corner fireplace throws its heat and sparks at an angle, and its hearth is often cut at angles to match. Those angles make it easy for one side of the extension to stop short of the distance past the opening that the code asks for.

We measure along each side of the opening as well as straight out from the center. Where one side falls short, we show how the extension can be reshaped so both sides meet the rule and the hearth still sits comfortably in the corner.