Edgewood fireplace repair
Fireplace Repair? For Safety’s Sake, You Could Need a Fireplace Replacement
Many things can transpire during construction of a Edgewood residence – not all wanted.
A new Edgewood house has myriad working components. Some require very detailed installations to work safely and according to plan. House builders, while good at many things, are hardly ever experts in the detailed installations of every mechanical element.
Enclosed fireplaces are one example. While welcomed for their comfy ambiance and effective room heating, wrong installation of fireplace inserts can create risks that threaten life and home: carbon monoxide leakage. Smoke backup. Live embers flying onto outside surfaces.
Safety concerns with a fireplace insert are often discovered during a fireplace inspection and cleaning in Edgewood. Periodically a fireplace repair is not feasible. If the fireplace is compromised, a complete fireplace replacement is needed.
Regular fireplace inspections are always advisable, for both safety and operational efficiency. Hiring a professional service such as Butler Chimneys, your fireplace and chimney inspection company in Edgewood, ensures that a fireplace is operating properly and your family protected.
Safety concerns can be found with both gas and wood-burning fireplaces. More often than not, the cause is improper installation. Often a problem isn’t obvious from outside the fireplace – a closer inspection inside, by a trained eye, discovers a compromised joint, section or non-working part.
If a part can be changed, it must be substituted with the duplicate manufacturer’s part. Aftermarket parts are notorious for creating issues such as smoke backup, or exhaust not drafting properly. If a fireplace ignites a house fire, insurance coverage could be denied if substitute aftermarket parts were involved.
Often, though, conditions mandate a total fireplace replacement. A box with rust is immediately verified as unsafe. If a fan stops operating, replacement is not a choice. A degraded refractory panel must be replaced.
In these cases, the complete fireplace system should be uninstalled, along with the nearby façade. It’s a multi-day undertaking for professionals such as Butler Chimneys. The work creates a window, though, for a homeowner to pursue improvements they might have already considered.
Many seize the opportunity to change over from wood burning to gas. Though without the heat generation of wood, gas is far more convenient (and less labor intensive) as fuel.
Others might choose an open wood-burning fireplace, rather than enclosed. While a net negative for heat, this design has old-fashioned aesthetics that many find comforting. An open fireplace is far less costly, too – usually one-third the price of a replacement insert.
The façade around the fireplace can be totally redesigned, as well. Tile, stone or brick veneer, or composite wood are popular selections. The hearth might be reimagined in limestone, tile, brick or stone. The mantle can be reworked to look like steel or wood.
Fireplaces are a desirable feature in Edgewood homes for multiple reasons. Realistically, these benefits come with possible hazards that shouldn’t be overlooked. So don’t – contact Butler Chimneys for fireplace and chimney inspection and cleaning and, if needed, changing a fireplace insert. Just because work wasn’t done right initially, doesn’t mean you have to co-exist with its risks.