- The daily life of a Chimney Sweep
- What the heck are Aldehydes?
- The importance of hiring a experienced chimney sweep
- One option for a fireplace that has seen better days
- The potential hazards of new construction
- Tip of the day – Pooling water
- Potential hazards of older homes
- Attic dangers
- Inspection of the day – Active water intrusion
- Fireplaces in vacation rentals – are they safe?
Our News
Keep up to date with Jacksonville Chimney Pros News & Tips
Improperly sized chimney caps
Already in 2019, I have inspected three homes where a 8" chimney cap was "installed" into a 10" flue termination. The obvious is that the person installing these chimney caps knows exactly what is going to happen eventually, along with the water intrusion damage that will occur when it does happen. What isn't obvious is that a chimney cap was incorrectly installed and even the active water intrusion can be hard to spot until it...
A roofing disaster
On one of my inspections yesterday, I encountered an absolute mess of a job performed by a roofer I will not mention. A new roof was installed a few months ago without replacing the chimney step and counter flashing and now the deteriorated flashing has started to allow water intrusion into the home. The roofer was called out again and this was the initial fix: 🤦♂️ Not only did they not replace the flashing (again), they covered the...
Dryer Vent Safety
It may not be one of the most exciting things to do (kinda like having your car worked on), but performing regular maintenance on your dryer venting system is essential for safety and also extends the life of your dryer. Consider this, a dryer vent is only four inches wide and even with 1/2" of buildup around the inside of the vent, your dryer vent is now only flowing through a three inch opening. As the dryer vent becomes more and...
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One option for a fireplace that has seen better days
Sometimes the elements win the battle against a fireplace, especially ones that have gone several years without maintenance. The fireplace above was...
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The potential hazards of new construction
One concern I see on a regular basis is the lack of regulation with chimney installations, including new construction. For reference here is the...
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Tip of the day – Pooling water
Water intrusion can be a costly headache but avoided if caught in time. This morning I inspected a chimney system with pooling water and...
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Potential hazards of older homes
I love working on older systems, partially due to working on several hundred growing up and living in a home built in 1926. Older homes have amazing...
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Attic dangers
When inspecting a chimney system it is key to inspect the attic where the flue passes through. It may be extremely difficult to access for some...
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Inspection of the day – Active water intrusion
My first appointment today was a active water leak coming down from the pre-fabricated fireplace and onto the front tile and the new wood floors!...
The Chimney Safety Institute of America recommends that open masonry fireplaces should be swept at 1/8″ of sooty buildup, and sooner if there is any glaze present in the system. This is considered to be enough fuel buildup to cause a chimney fire capable of damaging the chimney or spreading to the home. Factory-built fireplaces should be swept when any appreciable buildup occurs. The logic is that the deposit is quite acidic and can shorten the life of the fireplace.
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