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Expert: - 7/3/2010


Question

Bricks cracking
My chimney continues to crack apart - thin pieces of brick are now starting to fall off on the outer side, hairline cracks are throughout all sides and I now have a found a substantial gap where the roof meets.  There are no cracks on the top as its all sealed in concrete. The inside of the house fireplace is absolutely fine.  I initially repaired some tiny cracks when I first bought this using QuikCrete hydraulic cement on the top to seep into top cracks that were there.  I used "DryLok" all over to seal some hairline cracks on the entire outside. That worked for a couple years and now its worse that ever.  Yesterday I used Valspar Duramax Elastomeric Exterior in 1 area hoping to address the hairline crack issue.  I was going to try using Butyl caulk for that major gap by the roof but found by researching its difficult to apply, it remains tacky and I was going to cover it all with that DuraMax also.  I do not know where to go with any of this now.  Am I am not using the right stuff to begin with or not maintaining as frequently as I should.  I cannot afford to replace the chimney. I am pretty handy.  Any suggestions you may have would be greatly appreciated.

Answer
Kim,

Your chimney appears to have outlived its safe and useful life. You can use the links at the bottom of my home page at www.brooks-hearth.com to find an inspector offer NFPA-211, level II inspection and get a full and complete idea of the issues. Keep in mind that sealing over the viable exterior cracks is only a cosmetic repair. There is at least one wall of the four sided chimney that you cannot see and or patch this is the important one the one closest to the wood framing of your home. The photo you included looks like the bricks have have actually moved apart and the chimney appears broken horizontally above the flashing. Removal and replacement may be the only option. Best of luck to you and your family.

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

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