chimney maintenance Archives

The chimney is a very important part of any home with a fireplace. Its purpose is to expel smoke and pollutants from the fire away from the home. It’s important to maintain your chimney, ensuring that it’s doing its job properly and can withstand the elements. Services like chimney repointing are part of a good chimney maintenance routine.

Signs That Your Chimney Needs Repointing

There are a few telltale signs that your chimney needs a bit of care and attention. If you can see that the mortar has changed colour, is crumbling or flaking, then it’s time to get it repointed. However, it’s not always easy to get a good view of your chimney, so it’s worth carrying out a few more inspections about the home.

If you notice rust around your fireboxes or damper, this indicates that there may be excess moisture in the chimney. Other signs that the chimney is damp could be damaged paint or wallpaper next to the chimney breast.

What Is The Process Of Chimney Repointing?

To start with, the old and crumbling mortar is removed. If there’s some damage to the bricks, this can also be removed, so long as its not extensive. Next, the hollowed out areas are cleaned thoroughly in preparation for the new mortar. The new mortar is applied by hand, to ensure no further damage occurs to the chimney. Repointing will make your chimney appear like new, as the fresh layer of mortar will smooth out the edges nicely.

How Often Should Your Chimney Be Repointed?

This is a service that shouldn’t need doing very often. Every 30 years or so, you may need to get your chimney repointed. Of course, being exposed to the elements means that your chimney could suffer unexpected damage from storms and poor weather conditions. Therefore, you should still carry out regular inspections, even if it’s not been long since you last repointed.

Repointing will only be able to fix a certain amount of damage. If there’s extensive problems with your chimney stack, you will be better off seeking a chimney rebuild to ensure that your home is not put at risk. An unstable chimney can cause a lot of damage if it falls, which will be much more expensive to repair than a simple rebuild.

For Chimney Repointing & Repairs, Choose SJ Chimneys

We’re experts at chimney maintenance. So, if your chimney needs a little care and attention, give us a call. We’d be happy to carry out repointing, relining or rebuilding at a very reasonable price.

Chimney sweeping is an important part of household maintenance. If you own a wood burner, and you’d like to reap the many rewards of this property feature, it’s essential you keep it in good shape. Not only does this kind of maintenance help keep your home running smoothly, but it also protects the health of its residents.

We’ve put together this brief overview to help emphasise the importance of regular chimney sweeping.

What A Chimney Sweep Does

A chimney sweep will begin with an inspection as part of routine maintenance. Once it’s been established that everything is in good health, they will begin the cleaning aspect. This involves a series of tools such as brushes to clear any build-ups of soot and other flammable by-products in order to keep your chimney running efficiently. They can also clear blockages, bird nests, and anything else that may affect the use of your chimney.

The Benefits Of Chimney Sweeping

Regular chimney sweeping is important. It keeps your fireplace working efficiently, stops any unwanted smells or smoke from entering the interior of your property, and enables a long life for the chimney itself. However, it’s important we don’t just look at the benefits of maintaining a chimney regularly. We should also address the consequences of letting it build up. Please see below for an outline of these disadvantages:

Fire Risk

The main issue with ignoring chimney sweeping is the fire risk. Blockages and build-ups will eventually catch on fire. We don’t need to emphasise how catastrophic this can be. A fire in your chimney can quickly spread to the rest of your home, so we advise annual inspections in order to avoid this risk.

Insurance Implications

Home insurance can be affected by a lack of chimney sweeping. If your home is damaged due to fire, or water, and the culprit is your chimney, then a lack of inspection and routine maintenance could result in a rejected insurance claim.

Choose SJ Chimneys For Professional Chimney Sweeping

Get in touch with SJ Chimneys for expert chimney sweeping. We’re certified and experienced in both chimney inspection and maintenance. As a result, you can be confident that any work we carry out for you will be thorough. For a quote, or to discuss your chimney, contact us today.