r/Chimneyrepair

Okay, so I have a house with a dual flue clay liner brick chimney that hasnt been maintained by previous owners. Between the leaking cap on the first flue used for a wood burning fireplace, this flue also has a shifted clay section about 3 lenghts from the top so its OOS. The second services the boiler and hot water heater. It wasn't venting well when we bought the house, until I added a vent for make-up air. It does vent and have the proper pitch, I have checked at times with a proper meter from the firehouse, I would not keep using it if this hadn't corrected the natural vent.

The other issue is that it may have some settlement, it is an old style build where the hearth extends out supported but the floor joists instead of block to the footing. The foindation sits at about the face.of the firebox so the main weight is bearing as it should but the modern code is to have a full support.

The thing would need repointing but I think it is beyond that and it regularly spalls off big flakes of brick. I am sure if i lined it and poured around the liner that would add stiffness but I also was thinking that you dont see many brick chimneys on new builds and while I may not be a mason, I am a carpenter so am I out of my mind to consider ripping down the old brick to a point above the damper perhaps and then mounting the liner and boxing out a finish detail around.it. It seems like an ideal way for a lot of people to save when dealing with a masonry chimney that needs to be rebuild brick by brick but haven't seen it done before.

Even as a.hypothetical, is this not a viable idea? I would think a proper double lined stainless and a heat gap would make it easily safe enough or a layer of type x in the inside of all framing. I actually have a couple other more specific questions but figured I would start with proof of concept

I need advice about a couple things with my 1920 built home we bought.

First the chimney that carries the exhaust for my water heater and boiler is unlined currently, and it’s the original to the house. I turned off the boiler for the summer to save on my gas bill and the water heater is orphaned and not drafting properly without the boiler on.

Second my water heater is 13.5 years old and will need to be replaced eventually. I was considering going for a tankless unit and having my plumber vent the unit directly outside. I could also replace it with a standard atmospheric unit.

My questions is should the priority be relining the heating chimney which will run 3-4K most likely I was told or replace my water heater with a tankless unit and whole home filter( $5600 for the tankless and $2400 for the filter). My boiler will still be venting out the chimney either way.

I live in Long Island so prices are not cheap for this work.

Hello all! Ok! Looking for some guidance, hoping i can explain this in a way that makes sense.

My house is 161 years old. The chimney was unlined and the water heater vents into it. So...I was a good little homeowner, saved my money, had the chimney lined, capped, and 2 draft holes in the chimney filled where the water heater connects. 2 days later there's a leak somewhere in the chimney area coming into my upstairs bathroom. Chimney guy is super cool, comes back out, can't figure out what the problem is. Says the flashing around the chimney is really not ok, and that the roof is hinky. I have 5 different roofing companies come out. All say the chimney needs to be demoed below the roof line, B vent installed, need new roof because whoever replaced it last was drunk.

The furnace and the chimney are VERY close together in the basement. Almost touching. Something is dripping from up high in a dark cavern that no one can see.

My question is...

Could the act of lining the chimney and filling in those holes have caused condensation that can't escape from the water heater in the chimney? WHAT could be happening here? At first I thought the ducts for the HVAC may have been dripping, but now I'm not so sure! I have since put a heavy duty commercial dehumidifier in the basement and the dripping persists. The leak also shows up in the plaster upstairs even if it hasn't rained (the chimney area is tarped, but of course the whole thing isn't tarped because the water heater vents through the top).

Any help would be greatly appreciated! The water is starting to soak the beams below it, and who knows what damage it's causing in the house.

I've had roofers, HVAC guys, and a plumber all come out. Plumber is convinced that once a B vent is installed the issue will be resolved...buuut...that just doesn't make sense to me. Help!

After years of thinking we had a roof leak and trying various repairs we finally discovered it was actually coming from loose bricks in the chimney. Does anyone have a recommendation for someone who can fix it? I’ve found some on Google but would love to hear from someone who has had experience with something similar in Calgary.

Hello all! Ok! Looking for some guidance, hoping i can explain this in a way that makes sense.

My house is 161 years old. The chimney was unlined and the water heater vents into it. So...I was a good little homeowner, saved my money, had the chimney lined, capped, and 2 draft holes in the chimney filled where the water heater connects. 2 days later there's a leak somewhere in the chimney area coming into my upstairs bathroom. Chimney guy is super cool, comes back out, can't figure out what the problem is. Says the flashing around the chimney is really not ok, and that the roof is hinky. I have 5 different roofing companies come out. All say the chimney needs to be demoed below the roof line, B vent installed, need new roof because whoever replaced it last was drunk.

The furnace and the chimney are VERY close together in the basement. Almost touching. Something is dripping from up high in a dark cavern that no one can see.

My question is...

Could the act of lining the chimney and filling in those holes have caused condensation that can't escape from the water heater in the chimney? WHAT could be happening here? At first I thought the ducts for the HVAC may have been dripping, but now I'm not so sure! I have since put a heavy duty commercial dehumidifier in the basement and the dripping persists. The leak also shows up in the plaster upstairs even if it hasn't rained (the chimney area is tarped, but of course the whole thing isn't tarped because the water heater vents through the top).

Any help would be greatly appreciated! The water is starting to soak the beams below it, and who knows what damage it's causing in the house.

I've had roofers, HVAC guys, and a plumber all come out. Plumber is convinced that once a B vent is installed the issue will be resolved...buuut...that just doesn't make sense to me. Help!