Chimney chase repair for Richmond Heights homeowners

Where water gets into a framed chase

Rot inside a chase traces back to a water path. Finding every path matters more than the size of the stain, because a repair that closes one route and leaves another open will be wet again after the next hard rain.

Each path gets checked during the free inspection on your Richmond Heights home, and each one gets its own note in the written estimate. That way you can see which line closes the leak and which line repairs the damage the water caused. Wind direction matters too, since the face that takes the weather tends to leak first. These are the routes our technicians trace.

• A failed metal cover that lets rain run down the inside
• Open butt joints and split boards on the walls
• Gaps at corner boards, trim and the seam with the house
• Roof-line flashing that is missing, bent or lapped backwards

What the attic side of the chase can show

On a roof-mounted chase, the attic is the one place to see the chase from inside without opening a wall. Wet stains on rafters around the chimney, dark wood on the roof deck, damp insulation or daylight around the opening all say something about the chase above.

Looking into an attic means staying on the framing and keeping clear of the chimney pipe and any wiring. If the attic is hard to reach, leave it for the inspection. Blown insulation can hide the joists, so step only where you can see framing.

During the free inspection for homes in Richmond Heights, our technicians check the attic side when there is a safe way in. What we find is written into the estimate next to what we saw on the outside of the chase. A damp spot on the attic floor under the chase is often the clearest sign that water is getting past the chase walls.

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 Richmond Heights can have both cases on different faces, so the answer comes face by face.

Keeping the open chase dry during repairs

Once siding or stucco comes off, the chase is open to the weather. The sheathing, the framing and the chimney pipe inside all need cover until the wall is closed again. Rain on bare sheathing for even one night can undo part of the repair.

At the end of each workday, every open section gets sheeting lapped so rain runs off it, not into it. The top of the chase stays covered whenever the metal cover is off, and the covering is fastened so wind cannot peel it back.

If heavy rain is forecast during a job that runs several days, we check the covers before it arrives. Your fireplace stays out of use while the chase is open. Before work starts on a chase in Richmond Heights, you hear how many days it is likely to be open and how it will be protected.