Your chimney chase repair crew in Windermere
Our technicians probe the whole chase, not only the stain, so your Windermere estimate matches the real repair.
- Licensed & insured
- Locally run
- Family owned and operated
- Same-day service available
Chase work written up for Windermere homeowners
- Probe test of siding, corners and the chase base
- Top plate and framing under the cover
- Trim primed, installed and sealed at joints
- Temporary cover over any open section each day
What a lasting chase repair takes
The air space around the chimney pipe
The chimney pipe inside a chase has a listed clearance to anything that can burn, and that clearance is an air space. One maker's instructions, DuraVent's for its DuraChimney II system for example, say the required clearance space is never to be filled with insulation or any other material.
Studs, sheathing and blocking in the chase are all combustible. When a chase is reframed, every new piece has to sit outside that clearance, and a corner that has been pushed inward by a lean or a sag has to be moved back out.
Our crew checks the air space on all sides whenever a chase in Windermere is open. New framing is laid out around the pipe, never the other way around. The clearance figure comes from your system's own instructions, never from a rule of thumb.
Water or rust inside a factory-built firebox
In a factory-built fireplace, water from a leaking chase can run down the chimney pipe and into the firebox. Signs include rust streaks on the metal walls, damp ash, water marks on the refractory panels or a musty smell after rain. The leak may only show after long or wind-driven rains, which makes it easy to miss.
The metal parts of a factory-built firebox are not meant to be soaked again and again. Repeated wetting can rust them badly, and then the fireplace itself may need parts, which is a bigger job than stopping the leak.
When you see water in the firebox, stop using the fireplace until the source is found. Our crew traces the water from the top of the chase down, repairs the chase along that path, and notes any firebox damage for a separate fireplace estimate. Water that reaches the firebox has often sat in the chase for a while first.
Coordinating chase repair with a roofer
The bottom of a roof chase is where two trades meet. The roofer owns the shingles, tile or metal and the underlayment. The chase repair owns the framing, sheathing, barrier and siding. Flashing sits in between, and it is easy for each side to assume the other one handled it.
If you are getting a new roof, that is the easiest time to repair the chase base, since the old roofing is off and the flashing is being replaced anyway. If the roof is staying, the flashing is reworked with care so the roofing around it is not disturbed.
Our crew talks to your roofer before either of us starts. The written estimate says who replaces which flashing pieces and in what order. Homeowners in Windermere end up with one sheet that shows who owns each piece of the leak path.
Leaving the fireplace off while the chase is open
While a chase is open, the fireplace below it should not be used. Shields and firestops may be off, the air space is disturbed while framing is replaced and the chimney top may be uncovered. A tag on the fireplace is a simple reminder for everyone in the house.
The same goes for the time between finding serious damage and fixing it. A chase with charred framing, a shifted pipe or a missing shield should not see another fire until it is repaired. Heat from a fire rises straight into the top of the chase, which is the part most likely to be open or missing its shields during the job.
Our crew tells you when the fireplace in your Windermere home can be used again, which is after the chase is closed, the listed parts are back in place and the top is sealed. Until then, leave the tag on.
Other work in Windermere
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What homeowners ask about chase work
Do you work with my roofer?
Yes. Flashing at the chase base sits between the roof and the chase, so we agree with your roofer on who replaces which pieces before work starts. The written estimate spells out that split.
How long will my chase be open to the weather?
That depends on how much of the wall comes off and on curing time if the finish is stucco. We give you the plan at the start, and any open section is covered before the crew leaves each day.
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