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Repairing and Relining the Chimneys

One of the home improvement projects for the Melrose home was to repair the chimney. The chimneys for the furnace and the fireplace were both in need of repair. The furnace chimney flue needed to be relined to meet code. A flexible stainless-steel liner will protect the home from fire danger or carbon monoxide poisoning. Jack Frederick of Frederick Gerraghty reviews some of the technology that went into the fireplace. The pipe used in this project had a double wall which protects the heat of the natural draft needed to properly vent chimneys. Three-foot, twist-lock lengths of pipe were assembled on site and dropped down from the top of the chimney. The fireplace chimney needed urgent attention both inside and out, so a new gas fireplace insert could go in the hearth opening. There was a lot of damage to the brick at the top of the chimney. The bricks were removed and replaced by Tim Martinson of Upside Down Chimney Sweeps. Some of the bricks were very loose and were removed and re-mortered.

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Repairing and Relining the Chimneys

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Clip Transcript For:

Repairing and Relining the Chimneys

computer-generated transcript - may not be 100% accurate

" One of the home improvements that we wanted to do here was to repair the chimney. His old houses often have chimneys that need some work done from the masonry to sometimes realigning -- gets even more complicated but we also installed a rinnai insert watch. We actually had two chimneys to deal with on. -- The furnace chimney flue needed to be lined to meet code especially since we'd just replaced the heating system you never know when an old brick chimneys going to become a fire hazard since it's usually built. Into the structure of the house. It's important to use a flexible stainless steel liner to protect your home from any danger of fire or carbon monoxide poisoning."

" This is AB vent stack. It's specifically designed to vent gas appliances. It's a double wall pipe it has a concentric. Construction so we have a pipe inside a pipe. That protects the heat of the natural draft that we need to properly vent the flue gas products out of this chimney. The pipe is manufactured in various length sections were using three foot lengths today and it basically is -- lock system. And it's just a twist lock. And that locks it in place so once we're up on the roof. He'll be able to somewhat less than simply drop it down from the top of the chimney. "

" fireplace chimney needed some attention urgently inside and out so we can safely install a new gas fireplace insert. There was a lot of damage to the break at the top of the -- so those bricks were removed and replaced by Tim Morrison of upside down chimney sweeps."

" Here in Melrose I noticed that these bricks are all so -- went down on the bottom these bricks seemed to be loose. So I pulled one of the bricks out just to see how loose it was in the mortar and everything came out also. Want to run news business take these bricks out just re mortar them back and."

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Supporting the Chimney Flues and Hearth

Bob and the mason discuss the chimney. Pointing out that we have two flues, one for the boiler in the basement and one for the wood stove. By code, the ceramic flue liners need to be surround by at least four inches of solid masonry (the chimney). The mason tells Bob how they are going to attach the pipe from the wood stove to the flue. Then the mason shows how easy it is to cut a four-inch cement block with a hydraulic jack. The mason and Bob then discuss the supports for the hearth, including a concrete table and a blue stone finishing floor.

Trimming the Chimney with Fieldstone

The structure for the fireplace is now being trimmed out with real stone. Bob talks with John Nadler of Plymouth Quarries about the stone being used. In this case, real stone is cut thin so it can be applied like a manufactured veneer. The stone is a New England fieldstone from Connecticut. The stone can be cut with a hammer, a four-inch grinder, or a wet saw. Because the stone is so thin, it can be cut quite easily. It costs approximately $12-15 a square foot. In contrast to traditional stone which weighs about 50 pound to the square foot, this is a lightweight stone product weighing less than 15 pounds to the square foot. The installation can go from the top down as it does not require any structural footings underneath. Bob talks with Joseph McDonough of McDonough Masonry. McDonough built the original chimney when the house was built over 25 years ago. A grout bag is used to squeeze the mortar into the joints between the stones. After two to three hours, once the mortar is set, McDonough uses a pointed stick to scratch out the joints. He then brushes the joints to clear any fine leftover particles.

Repairing the Brick Chimney

Bob meets with Ed and Lisa Zywusko, a husband and wife masonry team and sees how they are going to refurbish the old brick chimney. Ed demonstrates the techniques used to lay the cement and place the bricks in place.