Fillmore fireplace repair
Fireplace Repair? For Safety’s Sake, You Might Need a Fireplace Replacement
Many things can occur during erection of a Fillmore home – not all wanted.
A new Fillmore home has multiple working components. Some need very detailed installations to function safely and efficiently. House builders, while skilled at many things, are often not experts in the detailed installations of every mechanical component.
Enclosed fireplaces are often one. While enjoyed for their cheery ambiance and efficient room heating, improper installation of fireplace inserts can cause hazards that threaten life and home: carbon monoxide leakage. Smoke backup. Live embers leaping onto outside surfaces.
Safety concerns with a fireplace insert are often uncovered during a fireplace inspection and cleaning in Fillmore. Occasionally a fireplace repair is not workable. If the fireplace is compromised, a complete fireplace replacement is needed.
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 Fillmore, ensures that a fireplace is functioning correctly and your family safeguarded.
Safety threats can be found with both gas and wood-burning fireplaces. More regularly than not, the source is improper installation. Typically a problem isn’t viewable from outside the fireplace – a closer inspection inside, by a trained eye, finds a compromised joint, section or non-working part.
If a part can be replaced, it must be substituted with the duplicate manufacturer’s part. Aftermarket parts are notorious for causing problems such as smoke backup, or exhaust not drafting properly. If a fireplace causes a house fire, insurance benefits could be turned down if substitute aftermarket parts were involved.
Often, though, conditions require a total fireplace replacement. A box with rust is automatically verified as unsafe. If a fan stops working, replacement is not an option. A degraded refractory panel has to be replaced.
In these cases, the total fireplace system should be taken out, along with the surrounding façade. It’s a multi-day undertaking for professionals such as Butler Chimneys. The project creates an opportunity, though, for a homeowner to institute improvements they might have already considered.
Many use the opportunity to transition 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 negative for heat, 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 around the fireplace can be completely reworked, as well. Tile, stone or brick veneer, or composite wood are popular choices. The hearth might be reimagined in limestone, tile, brick or stone. The mantle can be reworked to resemble steel or wood.
Fireplaces are a wanted feature in Fillmore homes for a variety of reasons. Realistically, these benefits involve potential 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 something wasn’t done right initially, doesn’t mean you have to co-exist with its risks.