Our Services
Rebuilding the box around your chimney in Chuluota
Local pros, line-by-line written prices and 10% off work booked within 72 hours of the inspection.
A cricket behind a wide chase
On the uphill side of a chase, roof water has nowhere to go but against the wall. A cricket, also called a saddle, splits that flow around the chase, and the Florida Building Code requires one on the ridge side of any chimney or penetration wider than 30 inches measured across the slope.
If a wide chase has no cricket, or the cricket's covering has failed, the uphill corner stays wet after every storm. We point it out at the inspection and price the cricket work separately from the chase itself.
Replacing rotted framing
Rotted studs, plates and blocking lose their strength and their grip on nails and screws. Where the rot is limited, new framing can be sistered alongside or pieces replaced. Where the base plate or corners have gone, the chase may need to be reframed from the bottom up.
We use fasteners and connectors suited to the lumber and the location, keep the chimney's clearances and make sure the chase is plumb and tied back to the house before the sheathing goes on.
Using the fireplace before the chase is repaired
A wet chase does not always make a fireplace unsafe, but some findings do. Damaged pipe sections, missing firestop parts or combustible material packed into the required air space are reasons to stop using the fireplace until they are corrected. Stains on the siding alone are a repair question, while problems at the pipe or its clearances are a safety question.
At the inspection you hear plainly whether the fireplace can be used in the meantime. When the repair is complete, we explain what was corrected and any remaining restrictions.
A yearly check of the chase and chimney
A yearly inspection is what NFPA 211 asks for on chimneys, fireplaces and vents. On a chase chimney, that visit should cover the enclosure along with the pipe, since a small leak at the top can rot framing for months before it shows.
A yearly look catches hardened sealant, loose trim, a shifted storm collar and early staining while the fix is still small. We can combine it with a sweep or a cap check on the same visit.
