Chimney Services
Chimney chase repair for homes in Heathrow
Our experts check the chimney pipe, the firestops and the clearances while the chase in Heathrow is open.
Signs of rot inside the chase
Rot inside a chase shows up outside in small ways first. Paint bubbles or peels on one face, siding swells at the edges, nail heads rust through, and a panel flexes when pressed. Inside the house, a stain can appear on the ceiling or wall near the fireplace.
Sheathing that stays wet for long periods softens and loses its hold on fasteners. We probe suspect areas, check for moisture where we can and tell you how much of the chase we expect to open before any work is priced.
Firestops and shields inside the chase
Where a factory-built chimney passes through floors, ceilings or an attic, its maker usually requires firestop parts or shields. The DuraTech manual requires a firestop radiation shield at each floor penetration above the support in multistory installations, and an attic insulation shield where an unenclosed chimney passes into an unoccupied space.
Chase repairs often expose these parts. We check that they are present and undamaged, and if one is missing or rusted, we explain what the chimney maker specifies before the wall is closed again.
Chases that sit on the roof
Some chases start on the roof deck instead of the ground, rising only a few feet above the roofline. Their base sits in the path of roof water, and their framing is tied into the roof structure. Water that gets past the base flashing can travel along the roof framing and appear some distance from the chase.
Repairs to a roof-mounted chase usually involve the flashing and the roofing around it as well as the chase walls. We plan both together so the roof and the chase are closed up tight at the same time.
Judging wet and rotted framing
Wood that looks sound can still be wet, and wood that is dry today may have been wet for years. When the chase is open, we check the framing and sheathing by probing for soft spots and, where we can, by reading moisture.
Wet but sound framing is allowed to dry before it is closed in. Soft, crumbling or split wood is replaced. You see which is which before we decide together how much comes out. A moisture reading tells us about the water in the wood and probing tells us about its strength, so we use both.
