Masonry and factory-built chimney repair in South Orange

Counterflashing set into the mortar joint

How the top edge of the counterflashing is held decides how long it stays tight. BIA guidance sets its edge 3/4 to 1 inch deep in a mortar joint, mortared in solid, so the metal is locked into the masonry itself.

One shortcut is a strip of metal fastened to the face of the brick with a bead of caulk along its top edge. A surface-mounted strip depends entirely on that bead. Once the caulk cracks or pulls away from the brick, water runs down behind the metal and into the very joint it was meant to protect.

Cutting the joint, setting the metal and mortaring it back in takes more time than a caulked strip. It is the detail we price on flashing jobs. The estimate says whether the counterflashing will be set into the joint and which joints are cut and remortared.

Cracks near the base of an outside chimney

An outside chimney is heavy, and it sits on its own footing of concrete or solid masonry, as the Florida Building Code requires. BIA guidance on chimney construction says soil conditions and type should be accounted for when that foundation is designed.

When the support below moves, the chimney above it shows the signs. BIA maintenance guidance treats the signs listed here as structural, and it puts structural issues outside the scope of ordinary maintenance.

Our crew notes what the base shows and where the cracks run. For homeowners in South Orange, the estimate says plainly when the next step is an engineer's evaluation rather than a mortar patch, and it holds back any masonry repair that depends on the answer.

• Cracks that run through several bricks near the ground
• Stepped or diagonal cracks in the lower courses
• Masonry at the base that bulges or has moved out of plane

Checking the chimney after a fallen limb or strong wind

A branch that lands on the roof, or wind strong enough to move patio furniture, can reach the chimney too. The damage is not always obvious from the doorstep, and the roof is no place to go looking. Debris can also drop into an open flue. The yard and an upstairs window show a lot.

Keep people clear of the area below any loose pieces and leave the fireplace unused if the top looks damaged. Our crew checks the chimney from the roof and down the flue, and the written estimate covers the damage that is really there, not a list of guesses. Before the visit, note any of these from the ground.

• A cap or chase top that sits tilted or is gone
• Brick, stone or stucco pieces on the roof or the ground
• Flashing lifted or bent where the chimney meets the roof
• A branch still resting against the chimney

What the free inspection covers

The free inspection is a top to bottom look at the chimney, not a quick glance at the one symptom you called about. It costs nothing, and nothing is booked or started until you have a written estimate in hand and say yes.

Our technicians first identify the construction, masonry or factory-built, because that decides which parts, code sections and maker's instructions apply. Then each symptom is traced back to the part causing it, rather than stopping at the first likely suspect.

The estimate names each finding, the repair and its price, so homeowners in South Orange can decide what to do and when. The look takes in the parts below.

• Cap, crown and the top of the flue
• Flashing and the roof line around the chimney
• Brick, stone, stucco or siding and its joints
• Firebox, damper and smoke chamber from below