Chimney repair and diagnosis in Mercy Drive

Fix the water source before the stain

A stain on the ceiling is where a leak ends, not where it starts. Repainting it, replacing drywall or scrubbing the brick before the water is stopped means paying for the same fix twice, because the mark can come back with the next hard rain.

BIA guidance on maintaining brick says to investigate and find the moisture source before attempting repairs meant to correct water entry. It also suggests a visual check for an obvious source, such as missing or deteriorated materials, before any deeper investigation, since that may save time and money.

So the order on your estimate runs from the source outward. The repair that stops the water comes first, and interior touch-ups or cleaning come after, once the leak is fixed and the masonry has had time to dry. For homeowners in Mercy Drive, that order keeps the money on the part that is actually failing.

Tile, metal and shingle roofs need different flashing details

Flashing has the same job on every roof. The Florida Building Code says flashing seals the roofing where it is interrupted and keeps moisture from entering the wall and roof at penetrations such as a chimney. How that job is done depends on what the roof is covered with.

The code has separate sections for asphalt shingles, clay and concrete tile and metal roofing, and each points to its own installation rules and manufacturer's instructions. A shingle roof takes step or L flashing worked into the courses. Tile and metal have profiles of their own, and a detail borrowed from a shingle job may not seal them.

Because the flashing ties into the roofing, some jobs need the roofer who installed or looks after that roof. The roof covering is identified before any flashing is priced, and the estimate spells out which work is ours and where a roofer has to be involved.

Options for relining a masonry flue

When a flue needs a new lining, the Florida Building Code keeps the choice to a short list of materials for ordinary residential appliances. The choice starts with the appliance, because the lining has to suit whatever is connected to it.

The size and shape of the existing flue, any bends in it and how much sound masonry remains narrow the choice further. Listed materials are installed per their listings and the maker's instructions, so the product chosen also fixes how the job is done.

Our chimney liner installation service lays out which of the options below fit your chimney. Each one is priced on the estimate so the decision stays yours.

• Clay flue lining, rebuilt inside the chimney
• A listed and labeled chimney lining system
• A factory-built chimney unit listed for use inside masonry
• Another approved material that resists the heat and condensate

The air space between chimney and framing

A masonry chimney is not supposed to touch the wood around it. The Florida Building Code requires an air space between the chimney and combustible material, larger for a chimney inside the house or within an exterior wall than for one entirely outside it. That space may not be filled with anything except the fireblocking the code calls for.

A renovation can close that gap without anyone noticing. Trim and sheathing edges may meet the chimney only where they sit far enough from the flue lining, which the code also spells out.

Our crew looks at the chimney where it passes floors, ceilings and the attic whenever it is part of a repair. Anything crowding it, like the examples below, goes on the estimate with what it takes to restore the space.

• Drywall butted tight against the brick
• Paneling or shelving fixed straight to the chimney
• New flooring or trim laid hard against the chimney face