Chimney & Fireplaces/Fireplace leak

Advertisement

Expert: - 9/13/2008


Question
I have minimum experience working on our home but am pretty handy so here goes;
I have a 30 year old house with a brick chimney which has been stuccoed around the same time it was build.  I have a leak which is dripping right over the opening of the fireplace.  When I look up into the fireplace there is no sweating from the top down until about 4' up from the bottom which coincides with some cracks I have in the stucco outside under a dripping gutter.  I thought a good test would be to drape some plastic over the cracks in the stucco and see if the dripping slowed down.  No such luck.  The area I focused on is above another area which has a line of moss horizontally across the exposed portion of the chimney following another crack.  My question is; should I chip out all the visible cracks (and moss) as well as clean up the chipped areas and re-stucco those areas?  If so, what products would you recommend?  How long must it be dry before application?


Answer
Theo,

Before damaging any of the stucco, I would recommend the system be inspected by a professional. You may find one close to you by using the links at the bottom of my home page at www.brooks-hearth.com. It sounds like the chimney crown to me. The crown is most likely original and made of mortar. The mortar deteriorates and allows water entry out side the flue tile and inside the brick exterior. What you describe is common with that. There are products available to chimney professionals to remedy this, but you can pour a new crown out out of concrete if DIY is your want. Good luck.

Chimney & Fireplaces

All Answers

Answers by Expert:

Ask Experts

Volunteer

Randy Brooks

Expertise

Inspection of Masonry, Pre-cast Tilt-up, and Factory Built Fireplaces as well as Free Standing & Insert, Gas, and Wood Appliances. We also provide Hearth Fire Loss Investigations, Litigation Support, Consulting Services, Flue Sweeping, Installation and Repair. Additionally, I’ve been a chimney sweep for 23 years, service and install hearth appliances as well as being recognized by the Superior Court of California as an expert witness.

Experience

Brooks Chimney Sweeping Since 1989 Ojai, CA Owner / President www.brooks-hearth.com

Organizations
NCSG, MEMBER,(National Chimney Sweep Guild), Member since 1990, Board of Directors representing Region 6, (CA, NV, AZ, UT, OR, WA, ID, WY, MT, AK and HI,) 2004-2011, ethics committee chair, 2004-2005, executive committee member, Vice President, 2006-2008, President, 2008-2011. CSIA, BOD (Chimney Safety Institute of America,) Board of Directors, ethics committee chair, 2004-2005, executive committee member, Secretary, 2005-2006, Vice President, 2006-2008, President, 2008-2011. HPBA, MEMBER, (Hearth, Patio, & BBQ Association,) since 2002. NFPA Member, (National Fire Protection Association) Since 2009. Technical Committee member for the 211 Standard.

Education/Credentials
California State Licensed Contractor, C61-D34, #750710. http://www2.cslb.ca.gov C.S.I.A., (Chimney Safety Institute of America,) Certified Chimney Sweep, #2580. Held since 1990 re-certified in ‘93, ‘96, ‘99, ‘02, ‘05, '08,'11. http://www.csia.org F.I.R.E. (Fireplace Investigation, Research & Education Service,) Certified Inspector, #FP-006. Held since 2000, re-certified in ’03, ‘06. http://www.f-i-r-e-service.com Fireplace Investigation, Research & Education Service,) Advance Expert Consulting & Witness, certificate, ’05 N.F.I. (National Fireplace Institute,) Certified Gas & Wood-Burning Specialist, #133851. Held since 2002, re-certified in '05,‘08. http://nficertified.org

©2012 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company. All rights reserved.