Despite being a very insignificant part of the kitchen, chimneys a very important part. Every home with a fireplace means that they too have a chimney. Most people with such homes pay so much attention to the fireplace and neglect the chimney, forgetting that, they too require maintenance.

For the sake of the safety of your family, it is important that you ensure chimney repair and maintenance is properly carried out.

Due to its location, a chimney is subject to many damages, brought about particularly by the different types of weather. Some of these damages are not very serious therefore require no need for a professional to rectify them; you can do it yourself. On the other hand, some are only best if done by a professional, particularly major damage.

Chimneys are designed to help us safely get rid of the smoke and gasses given out by a fire off our homes. This is a very important aspect because some of these gases produced are usually very dangerous, and can cause death in large enough doses. An example of such a gas is carbon monoxide.

The chimney also helps contain excess heat given off until it is vented outside in the air easily. This is because most of our homes are combustible, and failure to get out the extremely hot air without leaks could result to our homes catching fire.



It is for these reasons that it is important to ensure that the chimney repair are done by a professional and correctly, to ensure that you and your family safety is taken care of. Some of the common chimney repair issues include:

Creosote build-up

This is oil produced when you set wood and /or other solids on fire. After some time, creosote can accumulate inside the chimney, and in case the accumulation is too much and nothing has yet been done remove it, it can result to a fire breaking out in your chimney.



Holes or cracks in the flue

Some gases produced from the fire are a bit corrosive and after some time, they can destroy your chimney flue, giving room for blockages to take place or dangerous gases to leak into your house. To avoid this, make sure that you annually get a professional to inspect the chimney flue if it is correctly working.



Blockage

This is another commonly experienced chimney repair issue and takes place in the chimney flue. It might be because of debris from dislodging materials in the chimney or by animal nests. Irrespective of the level of blockage, they affect the chimneys efficiency in getting the gases, heat and smoke out from your house.



Chimney crown and chimney cap

These two comprise the chimney roof, which surround the flue and prevent debris or water from entering the chimney. It also keeps weather, animals and debris out of the flue. If they miss some pieces or crack, it can allow water to enter the chimney therefore destroying its inside or the flue ability to channel the heat or gases outside your home.



Brickwork problems

This is erosion of the brickwork or masonry around the exterior of the chimney due to the flue leaking. It requires extensive chimney repair. In the vent a lot of damage has been done, major structural chimney repair might be required, which only requires a professional.