Chimney repair, cleaning and fireplace service in Kingswood Manor

Ashes can look cold the morning after a fire and still hold live embers underneath. Kingswood Manor is a community in Orange County, and how you clear the firebox in your Kingswood Manor home matters as much as how the fire was built. NFPA heating safety tips have ashes cool first, then go into a metal container that sits a safe distance from the house.

EPA wood-burning guidance adds that the container should be covered and stored outdoors on a surface that cannot burn. A plastic bucket, a paper grocery bag or a spot against the garage wall does not meet that description, however cold the ashes seem. A thin bed of ash under the grate is normal in many open fireplaces.

Ash that turns wet or muddy after rain, ash mixed with crumbs of mortar or brick, and rust flakes on the firebox floor are not normal. They point to water coming down the chimney or to wear higher up, and they are worth a look before the next fire. Some masonry fireplaces also have a small door in the firebox floor that drops ashes into a chamber below, with a cleanout door lower on the chimney.

The Florida Building Code requires a noncombustible cover on masonry chimney cleanout openings. A cleanout door rusted open lets water and animals in, and one rusted shut makes the chamber impossible to empty. At the visit we inspect the firebox floor, the ash and cleanout doors and the flue above, and list any repair on a written estimate.

Our locally owned family team does the Kingswood Manor inspection at no charge, with upfront pricing and 10% off any service booked within 72 hours after it.