Chimney Cap Repairs & Installations

Chicken wire stuffed in the top of the flue tile does nothing to keep water out.

To meet minimum building codes, most chimneys have a cheap piece of chicken wire stuffed in the top of their chimney. While chicken wire may keep sparks from escaping, it does absolutely nothing to keep rainwater, smaller leaves and bird droppings from entering your chimney.

Water intrusion has washed out this mortar joint between the flue tiles, causing expensive repairs to be needed.

Left unchecked, rainwater is the most destructive element a chimney faces! In addition to eroding the mortar joints between flue tiles (causing dangerous open gaps within your flue), rainwater puddles on the smoke shelf, mixes with creosote (forming a highly acidic slurry), and seeps into the back wall of your firebox, causing expensive damage to the fireplace back wall.

Newly installed chimney cap.

If your chimney doesn’t have a chimney cap, NOW is the time to take care of the most basic preventative chimney maintenance tasks and have one installed. Spending a little money now on a high quality Chimney Cap will save you big headaches and expenses later!

In brief, here are several reasons for purchasing a chimney cap:

• 

  An unprotected flue is an “open door” policy for unwanted visitors!

  Keep Destructive Rainwater out of the chimney and avoid Expensive Repairs and stinky chimney smell!

• Keep dangerous sparks from escaping the chimney while a fire is burning!
• Keep Raccoons, Squirrels, Opossums, and birds out!
• Prevent Leaves, bird droppings, and other debris from getting into the chimney!
• Help prevent smoking problems caused by wind induced down drafts!
• Satisfy CA building Code which requires a 3/8” spark arrestor

Water has severely damaged the back wall of this fireplace. It now needs to be completely re-built…a very expensive job, indeed.

Without a chimney cap, leaves and other vegetation can completely block your flue! This can be dangerous!