Sitting by a warm cozy fireplace all through winter sounds good enough to be someone's wish. This is because a fireplace adds so much warmth to your home, however, over 25,000 chimney fires are being recorded every year. This is why it is very essential to make sure your chimney is safe and regularly checked.
Since most of the chimney system is hidden while the exposed ones are not daily inspected, it can be difficult to know when you need to call a professional for your repair.
With that said, we have documented Six danger signs that your chimney needs to be replaced.
- SMOKY HOME: If you notice that your home is smoking, or smelly this can be an indicator that your chimney needs a replacement. Because the chimney is lined with combustible materials and clay on the inside to prevent corrosion. Chemical materials can cause severe damage to your health if the fumes are not directed outside properly. Unfortunately, it can be very difficult to spot liner damage so consider calling a professional to do so. Make sure to watch out for blue flint shaking as this occur with time. Your professional can help you decide if your liner needs to be changed.
- EFFERVESCENCE ON CHIMNEYS EXTERIOR: If you notice white residue of minerals and salts on the exterior surface of your chimney then It is a sign that water is leaking into your chimney system and that can cause structural damage to your chimney. Also, make sure to check if your chimney is missing a rain gauge as water can easily get into your walls. This is added sign of an urgent repair.
- CRACKS: If you notice that water and air are finding their way in, through the fireplace this could mean that there are cracks around your chimney, especially in the crown and the motor. this can be a great problem because as cracks grow so do its structural problems. So it would be wise to fix them up properly
- STAINED CEILINGS AND WALLS: One of the easiest ways to find out if your chimney needs an urgent repair is if you notice stains around the walls of your chimney. Make sure to look for dampness, dark patches, and stains these are tell-tale signs that your chimney walls are sucking up moisture and urgent repairs are needed.
- CHIMNEY FIRE: Does loud cracking, popping, dense smoke, and intense smell sound familiar to you? These are signs of chimney fires that can cause expansion of structural materials and blow up and in the worst-case scenario, it can lead to a room explosion. To tell if you have had a chimney fire check for cracks in the exterior masonry, damaged tv antennas, or smoke escaping through the mortar. If you notice this call for a chimney sweep as soon as possible.
- LOW FUNCTIONALITY: As we have discussed earlier, ab a large portion of the fireplace and chimney system is hidden within the walls and this makes it difficult to know if there is a problem, what’s the cause, or how severe it is.
If you are having a hard time getting the fire going or there’s more smoke than usual, it might be an indicator that your chimney system is having issues and you need to pay attention to that and take quick action. Keep in mind that a minor hitch no matter how simple can be an indicator of a big problem.
Keeping your chimney safe and in good condition means you can enjoy your fireplace in comfort, peace, and safety. You might as well reach out to us for a full and professional inspection of your roofs today!