North Lake fireplace repair
Fireplace Repair? For Safety’s Sake, You Might Need a Fireplace Replacement
Many things can transpire during construction of a North Lake house – not all good.
A new North Lake house has many working components. Some require very detailed installations to work safely and according to plan. Home builders, while skilled at many things, are hardly ever experts in the detailed installations of every mechanical part.
Enclosed fireplaces are a prime example. While desired for their comfy ambiance and effective space heating, incorrect installation of fireplace inserts can create hazards that threaten life and home: carbon monoxide escaping. Smoke backup. Live embers escaping onto outside surfaces.
Safety problems with a fireplace insert are often revealed during a fireplace inspection and cleaning in North Lake. Periodically a fireplace repair is not workable. If the fireplace is compromised, a complete fireplace replacement is needed.
Regular fireplace inspections are always wise, for both safety and operational efficiency. Hiring an expert such as Butler Chimneys, your fireplace and chimney inspection company in North Lake, ensures that a fireplace is working properly and your loved ones safeguarded.
Safety concerns can be found with both gas and wood-burning fireplaces. More regularly than not, the source is incorrect installation. Typically an issue isn’t identifiable from outside the fireplace – a closer look inside, by a trained eye, identifies a compromised joint, section or non-working part.
If a part can be replaced, it must be swapped out with the exact manufacturer’s part. Aftermarket parts are notorious for causing issues such as smoke backup, or exhaust not drafting correctly. If a fireplace causes a house fire, insurance coverage could be denied if substitute aftermarket parts were used.
Often, though, conditions mandate a complete fireplace replacement. A box with rust is immediately marked as unsafe. If a fan stops functioning, replacement is not a choice. A degraded refractory panel must be replaced.
In these cases, the total fireplace system should be uninstalled, along with the surrounding 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 use the opportunity to convert from wood burning to gas. Though not possessing the heat generation of wood, gas is far more user friendly (and less labor intensive) as fuel.
Others might opt for an open wood-burning fireplace, rather than enclosed. While a net minus for warmth, this design has old-fashioned aesthetics that many find comforting. An open fireplace is far less pricey, too – typically one-third the cost of a replacement insert.
The façade surrounding the fireplace can be completely reworked, too. Tile, stone or brick veneer, or composite wood are popular selections. The hearth might be redone in limestone, tile, brick or stone. The mantle can be reworked to resemble steel or wood.
Fireplaces are a wanted feature in North Lake homes for many reasons. Realistically, these benefits involve possible hazards that shouldn’t be ignored. So don’t – contact Butler Chimneys for fireplace and chimney inspection and cleaning and, if needed, changing a fireplace insert. Just because installation wasn’t done right the first time, doesn’t mean you have to live with its risks.