Chimney Masonry Services

The interior space of your fireplace where you burn wood is called the firebox. Although the refractory mortar and firebricks used to construct this area are built to withstand high temperatures, over time, they tend to deteriorate. Sometimes the firebox becomes weakened with age and use or could be damaged as the result of a chimney fire. If you notice broken bricks or cracked mortar, our masonry experts can do a full or partial rebuild of the firebox so it looks and performs like new. Masonry repair is one of the ProTech Chimney Restoration specialties.

Tuckpointing is a way of using two contrasting colors of mortar in the mortar joints of brickwork, one color matching the bricks themselves, to give an artificial impression that very fine joints have been made. Therefore, tuckpointing is needed when the mortar between the bricks is cracked or missing. If this is not repaired in a timely manner, then all forms of precipitation will have the opportunity to penetrate these areas. Over time this deterioration will lead to a far more expensive restoration.

The chimney crown is the cement slab that tops off the bricks on your chimney. Chimney crown repair can be costly if gone unnoticed for a long period of time. Age and weather exposure can cause a crown to crack. If the cracks are not sealed, water penetrates the crown causing moisture damage to the crown itself and the bricks below. Left unrepaired, the result of the moisture damage will be spalling bricks and eventually the crown will crumble.

Spalling bricks are the result of deterioration of the brick surface that is caused by moisture. The climate in which you live, your home’s architecture, and the exterior’s condition can all be factored in the impact moisture can have on the brickwork. Spalling can occur on the inside or the outside of your chimney. If unrepaired, pieces of the brick facing can fall and cause more damage to the chimney.

Sometimes the damage to a chimney is so severe that the only reasonable option is to rebuild it. A chimney rebuild can consist of the entire chimney or just a portion of it, depending on the extent of the damage. Once the rebuild is done, we recommend waterproofing to protect your investment and to preserve the integrity of the chimney.

Chimneys take a beating from severe weather year-round. Water penetration is the single greatest cause of deterioration and damage. Waterproofing your chimney is a simple and easy task that will extend the life of your chimney for years and will protect against expensive repairs.