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Rust streaks down the chase siding
Runoff from a corroding cover. The staining is the symptom; the cover above it is the fault.
Chimney repair · Flower Mound, TX
Chimney Repair in Flower Mound, TX
Most chimney repair in Flower Mound is not brickwork. The typical home here was built around 1997, which means the chimney is a framed chase with metal components inside it rather than a masonry stack, and the repairs it needs are fabrication and sheet metal work rather than repointing.
The single most common repair we carry out in this town is chase cover replacement. Builder-grade galvanized covers corrode through in roughly twenty-five to thirty years, which puts most of the housing stock in range right now, and a failed cover lets water into the framing and firebox from behind where nobody sees it.
Flower Mound office on Long Prairie RdSame-week availabilityInsured & bonded1-year written guarantee
Overview
Two structures, one word
A masonry chimney is brick or stone around a tiled flue, and it fails at the crown, at the mortar joints and where the flashing meets the roof. A framed chase is a timber box, usually sided to match the house, with a metal chimney inside it and a sheet-metal cover on top.
Flower Mound has a great deal of the second kind. The repair work there is fabrication and sheet metal rather than bricklaying, and the parts that fail are the cover, the storm collar, the flashing and occasionally the chase framing itself.
Why it matters
Why small faults turn into large ones
Nearly every chimney repair is a water repair. A corroded cover, an open crown joint or lifted flashing lets water into a cavity nobody looks inside, and it runs down through the structure instead of showing on a ceiling.
By the time a stain appears indoors the water has usually been getting in for seasons. At that point the repair takes in the framing and the firebox, not only the part that let it through.
What to look for
Signs worth acting on in Flower Mound, TX
A white bloom on the brickwork
Efflorescence. Salts carried out of the masonry by water moving through it, so it marks a moisture path rather than a surface problem.
Gaps or lifted metal where the chimney meets the roof
Flashing that has moved. One of the most common sources of a leak blamed on the roof.
Cracks across the crown
The concrete cap on a masonry chimney. Once it is open, water gets between the flue and the brick.
Damp or a musty smell near the fireplace wall
Water inside the chase or the masonry, usually well before anything is visible.
Included
What the service includes
Chase cover replacement
Fabricated to your chase dimensions in stainless or painted steel, with a cross-break so water sheds instead of pooling.
Crown repair and rebuild
On the masonry chimneys that do exist here, cracked and spalling crowns rebuilt and sealed against further water entry.
Flashing repair
Failed or lifted flashing reset and sealed, which is the second most common water entry point on Flower Mound rooflines.
Firebox and panel repair
Cracked refractory replaced with panels matched to your unit model, or the firebox rebuilt where panels are discontinued.
Liner repair and replacement
Damaged or disconnected liners repaired or replaced to restore safe venting.
How it works
What we actually do on the visit
We find where the water enters
Not where it shows. That means looking at the cover, the crown, the collar, the flashing and the mortar as one system.
We tell you what is structural and what is not
Some of what looks alarming is cosmetic, and some of what looks minor is not. You get told which is which before anything is quoted.
We fabricate to fit
Chase covers and caps are made to the measurements of your chimney rather than fitted from a stock size that nearly works.
We repair the cause and the damage
Sealing a leak without addressing what the water already reached only delays the same call.
We document it
Photographs before and after, because most of this work is somewhere you will never stand.
What to expect
What the visit looks like
A repair starts with an inspection, because a quote given without seeing the cause is a guess. That first visit establishes what has failed and what the water has reached.
Small work is often done the same day. Fabricated parts such as a chase cover are measured on the first visit and fitted on a second.
Looking after it
What prevents the next one
Look at the top of the chimney once a year, or have somebody do it. Almost everything expensive starts up there and is cheap while it is still small.
Replace a failing cover before it perforates rather than after. A stainless cover fitted to the chase outlasts the galvanised one it replaces by a wide margin.
After a significant hail or wind event, add the chimney to whatever else gets checked. It takes the same weather as the roof and is inspected far less often.
Flower Mound FAQ
Common questions in Flower Mound, TX
Straight answers from the work we do here, not general advice copied from a manual.
What is a chase cover and why does it keep coming up?+
It is the metal lid on top of the framed box your fireplace sits in. Builder-grade galvanized covers corrode through in twenty-five to thirty years, which puts most Flower Mound homes in range now. Once one fails, water runs down inside the chase and damages the firebox and framing from behind, out of sight.
My chimney is not brick. Do you still repair it?+
Yes, and that is most of what we repair here. A framed chase with a metal chimney inside it is the standard build in Flower Mound. The work is fabrication and sheet metal rather than masonry.
The leak looks like a roof problem. Why call a chimney company?+
Because the flashing where the chimney meets the roof belongs to both, and it is one of the most common places water gets in. It is worth having the chimney side looked at before the roof is reworked.
Is a stainless chase cover worth the difference?+
It is the difference between replacing it once and replacing it again. Builder-grade galvanised covers are what corroded through to create the problem in the first place.
How do I tell whether I have a masonry chimney or a framed chase?+
Look at the outside. Brick or stone all the way up is masonry. A box clad in the same siding as the house, usually with a metal lid on top, is a framed chase with a metal chimney inside it. Most Flower Mound homes are the second.
Will a repair match the existing brick or siding?+
That is the intention, and it is something to discuss before work starts rather than after. Chase covers and caps are fabricated to your measurements, and we will tell you honestly where an exact match to weathered material is not achievable.
Should I involve my insurer?+
That depends on the cause and on your policy, which is between you and them. What we can do is document what we find with photographs and a written description, which is what an insurer will ask for either way.
More in Flower Mound, TX
Other Flower Mound services
Chimney Cleaning
Full flue, smoke chamber and firebox swept with HEPA containment throughout.
Read moreFireplace Inspection
A written condition report on the firebox, venting and clearances.
Read moreFireplace Repair
Refractory panels, gaskets and firebox components replaced to spec.
Read moreFireplace Cleaning
Firebox, grate, damper and glass brought back and checked.
Read moreFireplace Maintenance
The annual visit that keeps repairs small and the season trouble-free.
Read moreGas Fireplace Repair
Pilot, valve, burner, glass seal and exterior termination serviced.
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