Marcy fireplace repair
Fireplace Repair? For Safety’s Sake, You Might Need a Fireplace Replacement
Many things can transpire during construction of a Marcy home – not all welcome.
A new Marcy house has multiple working parts. Some involve very exacting installations to work safely and according to plan. Home builders, while skilled at many things, are hardly ever experts in the detailed installations of every mechanical part.
Enclosed fireplaces are a prime example. While welcomed for their cheery ambiance and effective 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 threats with a fireplace insert are often uncovered during a fireplace inspection and cleaning in Marcy. Periodically a fireplace repair is not workable. 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 Marcy, ensures that a fireplace is functioning correctly and your loved ones protected.
Safety problems can be revealed with both gas and wood-burning fireplaces. More often 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, identifies a compromised joint, section or non-working part.
If a part can be changed, it must be swapped out with the exact manufacturer’s part. Aftermarket parts are infamous for causing problems such as smoke backup, or exhaust not drafting correctly. If a fireplace ignites a house fire, insurance coverage could be turned down if substitute aftermarket parts were involved.
Often, though, conditions demand a complete fireplace replacement. A box with rust is immediately identified as unsafe. If a fan stops operating, replacement is not an option. A degraded refractory panel must be replaced.
In these cases, the complete fireplace system should be removed, along with the surrounding façade. It’s a multi-day process for professionals such as Butler Chimneys. The project creates an opportunity, though, for a homeowner to institute improvements they might have already thought about.
Many grab the moment to convert from wood burning to gas. Though not possessing the heat generation of wood, gas is far more convenient (and less labor intensive) as fuel.
Others might opt for an open wood-burning fireplace, rather than enclosed. While a net minus for warmth, this design has traditional aesthetics that many find comforting. An open fireplace is far less costly, too – typically one-third the price 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 redone in limestone, tile, brick or stone. The mantle can be reworked to resemble steel or wood.
Fireplaces are a wanted feature in Marcy homes for multiple reasons. Realistically, these benefits carry potential 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 properly the first time, doesn’t mean you have to live with its risks.