Why Chimneys Fail

There aren't many days when North Texas home owners actually get to build a fire in their fireplaces. This translates into well over 300 days out of the year where the fireplace gets as much respect as last year's treadmill — used to hold lots of stuff but mainly ignored.

But, when we do get 'a Blue Norther' blowing through, many home owners are thwarted in their efforts to enjoy the charm and warmth of a nice crackling fire. Now that they are ready to use their fireplace, many are stopped in their tracks when they notice daylight coming through the firebox or they can feel a cold draft coming in from outside. As their investigation leads them to bundle up and go outside, they are shocked to find that the chimney is falling away from their house and headed toward their neighbor's living room! It is at that moment that they are REALLY GLAD they didn't get to build a fire and risk burning down their whole house.

The bad news is that this happens to many North Texas fireplaces. The good news is that the majority of them can be saved to warm another day. Of course everybody wants to know: "WHY does my chimney not want to play well with the rest of the house?!"

I have seen many different fireplace scenarios over the years, such as the home owner who heard a very loud noise and discovered his entire chimney lying in his yard — it had been struck by lightning. Or the ones that were built inside of the house and were sitting on nothing but the floor for support-- those are not fun. But the majority of them are your standard fireplaces, built on the outer wall and bricked to match the house. In my years of experience I have reached the opinion that there are four primary reasons our fireplaces fail.

First of all, they are built tall, with a lot of weight and sitting on a very small concrete base. It is just a matter of time before the base gives way to the weight.

Second of all, the clay soil under the concrete base is always lifting and sinking as we go through the seasons and this works the chimney up and down and slowly gets it moving away from the adjoining wall.

Third of all, the tops of our fireplaces are constantly being impacted by strong winds which force outward directional movement.

And last but not least, they are almost never built with deep support piers under the base to help counter the other reasons.

Remember the good news: most failing fireplaces can be repaired and saved to "warm another day". What to do,what to do,what to do? You could call several foundation repair companies, but you risk going with a contractor whose enthusiasm exceeds their skill and it is too important of a problem to risk that. Your best bet would be to consult a structural engineer and proceed from there.

Get more information by visiting www.AceFoundation.com.

Chimneys and Piers

Just like few people consider foundation piers for swimming pools, few people consider piers and their fireplace chimneys. Why on earth are piers and chimneys even a topic?

Believe it or not, a chimney is a pretty heavy structure. Add to that the fact that a chimney needs to be straight, connected to the house (the fireplace, specifically), and structurally sound to do its job correctly and safely, and you can begin to understand why ensuring that a chimney is properly supported is so very important.

The Foundation Performance Organization recommends that for a mid-sized concrete slab house, four piers are necessary (that is, one pier at each corner of the chimney). If the chimney doesn't have external brick or stonework and is only one story tall, it may be possible to get away with only three piers.

What does this mean to you? Well, for starters, when you are considering a new home being built, you should ask the architect and/or builder about the chimney and its support. If you are buying an existing home, you should make sure the building inspection addresses this. And, if you're getting a foundation repaired, you should make sure that there is adequate support provided for the chimney if the foundaiton repair concerns the area containing the chimney. Always go with your gut -- if a foundation repair contractor tries to tell you that you need less than four piers (or three, if it's a lightweight chimney), then you should seek another contractor.

Do you have a question about foundation repair? Then ask us. We'll give you the answer and share the knowledge with others.

Get more information by visiting www.AceFoundation.com.