Waterville fireplace repair
Fireplace Repair? For Safety’s Sake, You Might Need a Fireplace Replacement
Many things can transpire during erection of a Waterville home – not all wanted.
A new Waterville residence has multiple working parts. Some involve very exacting installations to operate safely and efficiently. Home builders, while skilled at many things, are not always experts in the detailed installations of every mechanical element.
Enclosed fireplaces are a prime example. While enjoyed for their cheery ambiance and efficient space heating, incorrect installation of fireplace inserts can create risks that threaten life and home: carbon monoxide escaping. Smoke backup. Live embers escaping onto outside surfaces.
Safety risks with a fireplace insert are often uncovered during a fireplace inspection and cleaning in Waterville. Periodically a fireplace repair is not workable. If the fireplace is compromised, a complete fireplace replacement is required.
Regular fireplace inspections are always prudent, for both safety and operational efficiency. Hiring an expert such as Butler Chimneys, your fireplace and chimney inspection company in Waterville, ensures that a fireplace is operating properly and your family safeguarded.
Safety problems can be revealed with both gas and wood-burning fireplaces. More regularly than not, the cause is incorrect installation. Typically a problem isn’t identifiable from outside the fireplace – a closer look inside, by a trained eye, discovers a compromised joint, section or non-working part.
If a part can be changed, it must be swapped out with the duplicate manufacturer’s part. Aftermarket parts are notorious for causing problems such as smoke backup, or exhaust not drafting correctly. If a fireplace ignites a house fire, insurance coverage could be turned down if substitute aftermarket parts were used.
Often, though, conditions demand a total fireplace replacement. A box with rust is immediately identified as unsafe. If a fan stops functioning, replacement is not an option. A degraded refractory panel has to be replaced.
In these examples, the entire fireplace system should be removed, along with the nearby façade. It’s a multi-day process for professionals such as Butler Chimneys. The project creates an opportunity, though, for a homeowner to institute improvements they might have already thought about.
Many use the moment to change over from wood burning to gas. Though lacking the heat generation of wood, gas is far more user friendly (and less labor intensive) as fuel.
Others might choose an open wood-burning fireplace, rather than enclosed. While a net minus for heat, this design has old-fashioned aesthetics that many find charming. An open fireplace is far less pricey, too – typically one-third the price of a replacement insert.
The façade around 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 look like steel or wood.
Fireplaces are a desirable feature in Waterville homes for many reasons. Realistically, these benefits come with potential hazards that shouldn’t be neglected. 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 properly initially, doesn’t mean you have to co-exist with its risks.