r/Chimneyrepair

My gable end chimney is leaning inwards a bit. I’ve had 3 builders, a roofer and a structural engineer all say they don’t think it’s leaning enough to worry about it. Surely it shouldn’t be leaning at all? The house is about 80 years old I’m worried it will come crashing through the roof. The roofer went up and had a look, there’s quite a few cracks in the front of the mortar but he said it’s absolutely solid and if it was his house it wouldn’t bother him. Am I overreacting?

Looking at buying a house. The chimney is pretty slanted. It didn't look unstable but just a bit strange

Hey,
So I’m not sure if anyone can give me some ideas. But we have an older house (1960) and when we bought it the fireplace was non usable. I didn’t hear much aside from that. We noticed a draft and the opening was always closed, so we added an insert (first a wooden one) and then a basic metal insert. Seems totally fine most of the year, but on VERY hot days the fireplace opening will get sweaty right around where the insert is. It also is stinky like mildew or something.

We’ve had this house for 3 years. And there’s constantly crap happening. Having a chimney tec sweep it out and inspect it to see if they can figure out the issue. I’m hoping it’s as simple as installing a top seal damper. I don’t believe we currently have a damper. We eventually will install a gas insert.

Just really hoping someone can give me some hope that it’s not going to be a giant repair we have to tackle again.

I’ve worked masonry before in the summers (teacher) and the points look cdecent, nothing crazy.

Thoughts?

Should I hire someone to do this or could it be DIY?

My first inclination is to hire a pro since it’s roof related, but who do I even call for this, a roofer?

I’m in south east Ohio if that helps.

https://imgur.com/a/8r3ewdV

This is what my chimney looks like. The facade stone is falling away from the crumbling brick underneath. This is an issue in an of itself, of course but assuming I can successfully (and safely) remove what’s left, is that’s anything I can do to salvage the structure? How would you handle this situation?

Chimney Experts,

It's been crumbling away since even before I bought the house 24 years ago. A couple years back I looked at getting it rebuilt but the estimates were more than I was willing to pay.

My thought now is to tear it down to the roofline and cover the top by extending the roof over the opening. Below that cover the rest with stucco, stone veneer or something similar.

I'm in Madison, WI. I know nothing about the legalities of doing this.

There is nothing using the chimney (furnace, water heater etc.) and I’m converting the fireplace to a gas insert.

Any input is appreciated.

So my grandparents have this chimney made to replace the broken one.

Since the builder decided to make it thinner on the top and because this is a windy area, when we have wind almost no smoke goes out the chimney.

My idea was to do something like in the drawing, like a wall with a steel sheet so that the wind does not hit the vents directly in hopes that that fixes it.

I am however looking for guidance as I don't know a whole lot about chimney physics.

https://share.icloud.com/photos/0db4bdwPQi1Y1oEvGm55RuZKg

https://share.icloud.com/photos/021Aoux\_TbKEqnf599WDOI1WQ

https://share.icloud.com/photos/0f555UnskvgZSPo8GkdtCM50Q

I had a company come and give me an estimate to add flashing to areas of my roof. The guy never went on the roof. He said I needed to have the chimney repointed. The mortar looks okay to me and I didn’t think there was much danger. What do you guys think? How urgent is this? Do I have 5-10 years so I can do it when I do the roof?

Thank you for any advice and suggestions.

I was cleaning my roof and noticed back foamy stuff had been dropping out of my chimney, called a local company for an inspection, which obviously I failed. I don't doubt their findings and the tech seemed legit.

I am trying to check to see if the cost to address the issues is in the right ball park. I attached pictures from the inspection. I am in the Everett WA area.

Chimney - PCR Treatment - $899.00

Chimney - Deep Clean - $499.00

ROUND Spark Arrester Rain Cap - $480.00

I’m not sure if this chimney needs to be a total rip down and rebuild or just a new crown re-pointing and waterproofing. It’s double the price to redo the whole chimney. I keep getting different opinions. I’m not sure how long a repair would last this project really pains me because my dad was a mason but he passed and I can’t ask his advice anymore.

So I called a guy because I could see something growing out of my chimney from the street. I expected something simple like just pulling it out bc you can't really see the damage from the ground (2 story home). Turns out this is pretty cracked up. I had zero idea. No leaks as far as I know.

I'm told top 8-9 rows need to be rebuilt with a new crown (cap flew off also, will be replaced).

Quoted $5.5k for 2-3 days work.

Had the flashing and storm collar repaired by a local company. Should I be concerned about this install? I thought flashing was supposed sit under the shingles at the top of the slope to avoid rain run-off. Looks like they just slapped it on there and then went over the edges and screws with silicone. Second pic is before work was done. Should I get the to repaint the scratched chimney pipe too?

Does this look like a reasonable amount? 4800 for complete rebuild. I like the contractor but first time dealing with this kind of repair. Memphis TN area.

https://imgur.com/gallery/chimney-chase-g0K4yML

We had a chimney company pour us a new crown. The first one they did was completely flat. We asked that they make one that would be able to shed water. The second one they added a slope but it looks pretty rough. Is this an acceptable slope and finish for a chimney crown?

My house has a brick chimney that’s painted white. I noticed recently what appears to be the paint wearing off. I’m capable of fixing paint myself, but I am not sure how to know if the paint issue is related to water intrusion into the chimney in which case I need a chimney/brick guy. How can I evaluate whether it’s simply an issue of needing paint or its water damage from inside causing that paint loss?

Obviously I can call a chimney guy but I live in a high cost of living area where I’m sure the answer will always be “yes you need us to fix that” even when that is not the case.

I appreciate any experience shares on this.

I just had a home inspection done on this house in Ohio. Wondering how costly / how necessary repairing this issue is so I can negotiate the cost of the repairs correctly

100 year old home. Wondering why these bricks are black like soot. Was wrapped in this foil paper. Wood framing and lathe was right up against it.

Is it okay to have framing right beside a chimney? We have a wood oil furnace and mainly heat with firewood. I know there is a fairly new sleeve inside the chimney.

When I'm finishing this space do I need to wrap it back up in a similar product? Links to what to use?

Tia