Palmyra fireplace repair
Fireplace Repair? For Safety’s Sake, You Could Need a Fireplace Replacement
Many things can transpire during building of a Palmyra home – not all good.
A new Palmyra house has multiple working elements. Some require very specific installations to function safely and properly. Home builders, while good at many things, are rarely experts in the precise installations of every mechanical part.
Enclosed fireplaces are a prime example. While welcomed for their comfy ambiance and efficient space heating, wrong installation of fireplace inserts can generate hazards that threaten life and home: carbon monoxide escaping. Smoke backup. Live embers escaping onto outside surfaces.
Safety issues with a fireplace insert are often found during a fireplace inspection and cleaning in Palmyra. Periodically a fireplace repair is not possible. 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 Palmyra, ensures that a fireplace is functioning correctly and your family protected.
Safety threats can be identified with both gas and wood-burning fireplaces. More regularly than not, the culprit is improper installation. Usually a problem isn’t obvious from outside the fireplace – a closer check 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 infamous 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 involved.
Often, though, conditions require a total fireplace replacement. A box with rust is immediately identified as unsafe. If a fan stops operating, replacement is not a choice. A degraded refractory panel must be replaced.
In these examples, the entire fireplace system should be taken out, along with the nearby façade. It’s a multi-day undertaking for professionals such as Butler Chimneys. The project creates an opportunity, though, for a homeowner to make improvements they might have already considered.
Many seize the opportunity to convert 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 select an open wood-burning fireplace, rather than enclosed. While a net minus for heat, this design has old-fashioned aesthetics that many find comforting. An open fireplace is far less costly, too – typically one-third the cost of a replacement insert.
The façade surrounding the fireplace can be majorly reworked, too. Tile, stone or brick veneer, or composite wood are popular options. The hearth might be reimagined in limestone, tile, brick or stone. The mantle can be reworked to resemble steel or wood.
Fireplaces are a welcome feature in Palmyra homes for many reasons. Realistically, these benefits involve possible 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 work wasn’t done right initially, doesn’t mean you have to co-exist with its risks.