Oakwood fireplace repair
Fireplace Repair? For Safety’s Sake, You Might Require a Fireplace Replacement
Many things can happen during building of a Oakwood home – not all wanted.
A new Oakwood residence has multiple working elements. Some need very exacting installations to work safely and according to plan. Home builders, while skilled at many things, are rarely experts in the precise installations of every mechanical part.
Enclosed fireplaces are one example. While desired for their comfy ambiance and effective room heating, incorrect installation of fireplace inserts can generate risks that threaten life and home: carbon monoxide leakage. Smoke backup. Live embers flying onto outside surfaces.
Safety threats with a fireplace insert are often discovered during a fireplace inspection and cleaning in Oakwood. Sometimes a fireplace repair is not feasible. If the fireplace is compromised, a total fireplace replacement is needed.
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 Oakwood, ensures that a fireplace is working properly and your family safeguarded.
Safety threats can be revealed with both gas and wood-burning fireplaces. More often than not, the source is incorrect installation. Usually an issue isn’t obvious from outside the fireplace – a closer inspection inside, by a trained eye, identifies a compromised joint, section or non-working part.
If a part can be replaced, it must be substituted with the exact manufacturer’s part. Aftermarket parts are infamous for creating problems such as smoke backup, or exhaust not drafting properly. If a fireplace sparks a house fire, insurance coverage could be denied if substitute aftermarket parts were involved.
Often, though, conditions demand a total fireplace replacement. A box with rust is automatically identified as unsafe. If a fan stops functioning, replacement is not a choice. A degraded refractory panel must be replaced.
In these situations, the complete fireplace system should be removed, 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 change over from wood burning to gas. Though not possessing the heat production 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 heat, 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 majorly redesigned, 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 Oakwood 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 something wasn’t done correctly the first time, doesn’t mean you have to co-exist with its risks.