Fireplace hearth repair by local pros in Lake Butler

Hot ashes and the hearth finish

Ash shoveled out of the firebox can hold hot cinders after the fire looks finished. One maker's manual has owners carry ashes out in a lidded metal container that closes tightly, and set it down on the ground or a noncombustible floor, far from anything that can burn.

A bucket on the hearth sits on a noncombustible surface, though its heat can still mark some finishes. If an ash container has left rings or cracks, we include those tiles in the repair and suggest a spot for the bucket that the finish can take.

Hearths for see-through fireplaces

A see-through fireplace opens into two rooms, and each opening sits in front of its own floor. The protection in front of one side does nothing for the other.

We measure each opening and each extension separately and write them as two items on the estimate. Repairs often differ between the sides as well, since one side usually faces the busier room.

• Each opening measured
• Each extension measured
• Two lines on the estimate

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.

Damage that only shows once the finish is off

Some hearth problems stay hidden until the tile comes up, such as a cracked slab, an old patch, wood left under the base or a void where support has washed out.

We tell you before starting which findings would change the job, and we stop to show you if one appears. Nothing is added to the work without your approval, and the revised scope and price are written down first.

• A cracked slab under sound tile
• An old patch in the base
• Wood left under the hearth
• A void where support washed out