Your chimney chase repair crew in Lawsona/Fern Creek

Approving added work before it is done

Hidden damage is part of chase work. Once the siding is off, the rot may reach further than the probe showed from outside. What matters is how that news reaches you. A careful probe narrows that risk, but it cannot see through sound siding into a soft stud.

Our rule is simple. If opening the chase shows more damage than the estimate covers, we stop, show you what we found and write up the added work with its price. Nothing extra happens until you approve it.

The change is added to your written estimate, so the final bill matches what you approved line by line. If you choose to stop at the approved work, we close the chase properly and note what was left. The written change covers these points.

• What we found and exactly where
• The added materials and labor, with a price
• How the change affects the schedule
• What happens if you decide to wait

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 Lawsona/Fern Creek estimate. Satellite mounts screwed into the chase get checked for leaks at the screw holes.

Siding boards and nails working loose

Nail heads backing out, boards that rattle in wind and siding that has slipped at the corners all point to a problem behind the finish. Nails hold in firm wood. When the sheathing and studs soften, the nails lose their grip and the siding moves. Vinyl nailed too tight can look loose for a different reason, which is why we check how it hangs.

Renailing loose boards into soft wood only holds for a short time. The new nails pull out the same way the old ones did. Longer nails driven through soft sheathing into soft studs fare no better, and they risk reaching toward the air space inside.

What each loose board was fastened into decides the fix. If the wood behind is firm, the siding is refastened with corrosion-resistant nails. If it is soft, the board comes off and the wall behind it is repaired first. A chase in Lawsona/Fern Creek can have both cases on different faces, so the answer comes face by face.

The yearly check that includes the chase

NFPA 211 sets a yearly inspection of chimneys, fireplaces and vents, checking that they are sound, free of deposits and properly clear of combustibles, with cleaning, upkeep and repairs wherever the inspection finds a need. On a factory-built system, the chase around the chimney is a sensible part of that look.

A yearly look catches open joints, lifted flashing and soft spots while they are small. It is also a chance to confirm that nothing has been stored, run or packed into the air space since the last visit. On a stucco chase, it is also when new hairline cracks and hollow spots are easiest to catch and seal.

Our technicians include the chase walls, trim, base flashing and attic side in the yearly check for homes in Lawsona/Fern Creek. Anything that needs repair goes into a written estimate you can act on now or keep for later. If nothing needs work, you hear that too.