Lake Forest fireplace repair
Fireplace Repair? For Safety’s Sake, You Might Need a Fireplace Replacement
Many things can transpire during building of a Lake Forest home – not all welcome.
A new Lake Forest house has multiple working elements. Some require very exacting installations to operate safely and according to plan. Home builders, while skilled at many things, are not always experts in the precise installations of every mechanical part.
Enclosed fireplaces are one example. While welcomed for their comfy ambiance and efficient room heating, improper installation of fireplace inserts can cause risks that threaten life and home: carbon monoxide leakage. Smoke backup. Live embers flying onto outside surfaces.
Safety issues with a fireplace insert are often identified during a fireplace inspection and cleaning in Lake Forest. Sometimes a fireplace repair is not feasible. If the fireplace is compromised, a complete fireplace replacement is necessitated.
Recurring fireplace inspections are always recommended, for both safety and operational efficiency. Hiring an expert such as Butler Chimneys, your fireplace and chimney inspection company in Lake Forest, ensures that a fireplace is working correctly and your family protected.
Safety issues can be uncovered with both gas and wood-burning fireplaces. More regularly than not, the reason is incorrect installation. Normally a problem isn’t noticeable from outside the fireplace – a closer look 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 infamous for creating problems such as smoke backup, or exhaust not drafting correctly. If a fireplace sparks a house fire, insurance coverage could be denied if substitute aftermarket parts were used.
Often, though, conditions demand 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 situations, the complete fireplace system should be uninstalled, along with the surrounding façade. It’s a multi-day process for professionals such as Butler Chimneys. The project creates a window, though, for a homeowner to make improvements they might have already considered.
Many seize the opportunity to convert from wood burning to gas. Though not possessing 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 warmth, this design has traditional aesthetics that many find charming. An open fireplace is far less expensive, too – usually one-third the price of a replacement insert.
The façade around the fireplace can be majorly reworked, too. Tile, stone or brick veneer, or composite wood are popular choices. 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 Lake Forest 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.