Our Process
How fireplace repairs are done in Lake Charm
Rebuilding a firebox back wall that has worn thin
Behind the firebrick sits the rest of the firebox wall. In a lined masonry firebox, the back and side walls must be 8 inches of solid masonry counting the lining, or 10 inches without one (R1001.5). When a back wall bulges, shifts or has lost bricks, the repair is bigger than a single joint.
In that case the damaged section is taken down to sound masonry and rebuilt, keeping the depth and shape the fireplace was built with. We explain the extent before quoting. If the damage runs past the firebox into the structure above, that part is listed separately so the Lake Charm estimate stays easy to read.
Smoke chamber repair above the fireplace damper
Between the damper and the flue sits the smoke chamber, which narrows the smoke from the wide firebox into the flue. The code calls for its walls to be solid masonry with the inside surface parged smooth using refractory mortar that meets ASTM C199 (R1001.8). Rough, stepped brick or parging that has fallen away slows the smoke on its way up.
You cannot see the smoke chamber from the room, which is why flakes of mortar on the damper or in the firebox are worth mentioning when you call. Our specialists inspect it during the free visit to your Lake Charm home, and where the surface has failed they parge it with refractory mortar and list that repair on its own line.
Repairing a shallow or Rumford-style fireplace
The residential code sets a masonry firebox at least 20 inches deep (R1001.6). Rumford fireplaces are the named exception: shallower and taller, at least 12 inches deep and at least one-third as deep as the opening is wide, with a throat set higher and sized to the opening.
That shape is deliberate, so a repair keeps it. Our pros measure the firebox before relaying brick or reshaping a damaged back wall, and they do not deepen or narrow a fireplace to suit a stock part. If your Lake Charm fireplace was altered in the past, we explain what that change means for the way it draws.
Hearth extension repair when the hearth falls short
Sparks and rolling embers land in front of the opening, which is why the hearth extension has minimum dimensions. Section R1001.10 asks for 16 inches of extension in front of the opening and 8 inches to either side, and for 20 and 12 inches once the opening reaches 6 square feet.
Flooring projects sometimes trim an extension back, and some remodels left it short. During the free inspection we measure yours and tell you whether it meets the dimensions for your opening. If it does not, our pros explain how the extension can be enlarged with masonry that suits the finish in your Lake Charm home.
