Expert: James Ball - 3/4/2009

Question
QUESTION: I live in Michigan (winter season).  Our colonial style house recently had the top 36 rows of brick on the chimney replaced and a chimney liner installed.  The chimney has a tile liner and the crown was replaced too.  The mortar looks to be fine on the old and new bricks.  We keep getting water in the basement thought the chimney access door.  The roof is fairly new, the flashing is just fine.  The hot water heater and furnace is now hooked to the liner.  I'm at the end of my rope trying to figure out why the water is coming in.  I looked through the access door once when it was raining and it looked like it was raining in my chimney!  Can you please help? I wanted to remove the access door and cement the opening shut but I'm worried the chimney would just fill up with water.  Should there be a seal between the cement on the cap and the tile that sticks out of the chimney? If so, what can I use to make sure it seals well? Tar?  Can this water be absorbed by the old bricks and come down the inside of the chimney that way?  Can I seal the brick with some type of masonry sealer?  

Any help is appreciated.  

Tony


ANSWER: Hello Tony, is this new? Is this why you did all the work? is the ash trap below ground? I have seen that happen before if you ash trap is below ground then it might be ground water and then you will need to install drainage out side to get it away from the foundation.
hope this  helps, keep me posted
James

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: This is not a new contstuction.  The chimney runs down the side of the house.  The thing is the chimney is between the house and the a screened in room connected to the house.  The floor is concreat, the roof is shingled.  When it rains, I dont gett water running down the outside of part of the chimney that basically in this screened in room.  I'm saying this because I cant see where grown water would be coming in unless its traveling under the concreat floor.  

Man am I lost!

Answer
Welcome back Tony, where do your gutter drains go? try piping them away from that entire area and see if it helps?
as water can go under a cement slab.
next step might be to install a sub pump in the ash trap to pump the water out.
keep me posted
James