Chimney repair?

[anonyme]

Last winter I had some ceiling leaks around the chimney area, so I need someone to seal/repair the flashing and identify other potential leak areas. Any recommendations? My budget is beyond tight; strangled would be more like it. Thanks for any suggestions.

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[redblack]

a little free advice, so you have an idea of what you’re looking at beyond the flashing.

does water ever enter the firebox? if so, that’s a cracked cap or failing mortar joints.

how do the mortar joints look? if they’re crumbling or they’re full of moss, you’ll need a tuck-pointing job or a partial rebuild of the chimney. moss kills chimneys, and they should be kept clean on the outside.

are the roof and chimney easily accessible? how high is the chimney? easy access lowers per-hour labor costs.

those are the things a bricklayer will look at.

flashing is a funny area, though. some bricklayers say it’s a roofers job. some roofers say it’s a bricklayer’s job.

i’ll ask around and see if anyone i know wants to look at it as side work. i know how to do it, but i don’t own all of the requisite tools.

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[anonyme]

RB, I had an inkling (hope) that you might respond!

Actually, it’s a complex situation which I happen to know a little bit about. The inside fireplace has been sealed off, as the firebox was beyond repair and I could not afford to fix it. The chimney itself is on an exterior wall; the gutters abut each side of the chimney rather than running all the way across it. I have some suspicions about this arrangement. The chimney itself is in pretty good shape (according to two professional masons) but could use a little tuckpointing. I don’t see the point in spending $$ on that as the fireplace itself is defunct. The leaks only occur during occasions of combined high wind and driving rain. Which leads me to believe it’s the flashing, as a roofer gave an estimate not too long ago and said nothing looked loose. TMI?

Tiny house, chimney on exterior, low roof with very low pitch. Only complication is plants; there are lots of them, and I am VERY protective.

I’d appreciate any other thoughts you might have, and if you wanted to take a shot yourself – that would be AWESOME. I would love to meet you sometime.

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[redblack]

fair warning, anonyme, since the rain is coming soon: i’ve been asking around, but the guys i know don’t want to take on anything that small. i have a friend in white center that i haven’t been able to reach yet, though.

there are two levels of flashing. step flashing hangs out of the bricks. counter flashing goes under the step flashing, and is bent over the roof, making a gutter to direct water away from the gap between the roof and the masonry. when we rebuild chimneys, we install step flashing. roofers counter-flash. but i don’t know any bricklayers who want to repair step flashing. they usually say, “call a roofer.” weird.

maybe a handyman would be the best bet.

me? i don’t do side jobs for a number of reasons. liability is chief among them. then there’s the fact that my own to-do list is growing by the day.

oh, and when i have to protect someone’s plants from dust and mortar, i cover them with landscape cloth. works great.

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[anonyme]

Thanks RB. My original intention was to take a look and patch it up myself. Then, as you pointed out, I realized the rain would be here soon and that my own “to do” list was daunting enough. So, then I thought maybe it was time to reach out and get some help before it’ too late. Guess it’s back to the original plan!

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