River Hills fireplace repair
Fireplace Repair? For Safety’s Sake, You Might Need a Fireplace Replacement
Many things can occur during building of a River Hills house – not all desirable.
A new River Hills residence has myriad working elements. Some need very detailed installations to operate safely and according to plan. Home builders, while proficient at many things, are not always experts in the precise installations of every mechanical element.
Enclosed fireplaces are one example. While desired for their comforting ambiance and efficient room heating, incorrect installation of fireplace inserts can cause hazards that threaten life and home: carbon monoxide leakage. Smoke backup. Live embers leaping onto outside surfaces.
Safety problems with a fireplace insert are often revealed during a fireplace inspection and cleaning in River Hills. Sometimes a fireplace repair is not feasible. If the fireplace is compromised, a complete fireplace replacement is required.
Recurring 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 River Hills, ensures that a fireplace is operating correctly and your family safeguarded.
Safety issues can be uncovered with both gas and wood-burning fireplaces. More often than not, the culprit is improper installation. Often a problem isn’t noticeable 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 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 sparks a house fire, insurance benefits could be turned down if substitute aftermarket parts were used.
Often, though, conditions merit a complete fireplace replacement. A box with rust is automatically marked as unsafe. If a fan stops working, replacement is not a choice. A degraded refractory panel has to be replaced.
In these instances, the entire fireplace system should be uninstalled, along with the nearby façade. It’s a multi-day undertaking for professionals such as Butler Chimneys. The project creates a window, though, for a homeowner to make improvements they might have already thought about.
Many use the moment to convert from wood burning to gas. Though lacking 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 negative for warmth, this design has old-fashioned aesthetics that many find charming. An open fireplace is far less costly, too – usually one-third the price of a replacement insert.
The façade buttressing 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 desirable feature in River Hills homes for many reasons. Realistically, these benefits carry 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 correctly initially, doesn’t mean you have to live with its risks.