Chimneys Archives - Charles Buell Consulting LLC

July 26, 2016 by Charles Buell

The Walking and Crawling Home Inspector

Home inspectors often have to crawl over, under and inside things in the process of inspecting a home. It is not a job for the claustrophobic, or those that do not possess an irrational sense of adventure, or unrealistic curiosity.

Of course every inspector will have their own line-in-the-sand as to what they will do and won’t do, but generally speaking, as a group, home inspectors tend to do what no one else in their right mind would do.

On a recent inspection, while traversing the attic I had to crawl through an unusual tunnel between two chimneys that had been corbelled together so that they could both pass through the roof at just one location.

I guess finding this in the attic I should have been prepared for what it would take to get from one side of the crawl space to the other. I wish I could have filmed myself crawling under this duct.

Laying on one’s back, it was possible to slither under the duct–but it was a little disconcerting having no way to really know what was on the other side until I got there.

Of course it was well worth the trip, as there was extensive water damage in the crawl space on the other side.

It is my business model to do what it takes to provide the best information I can–sometimes it just is not possible and I have to recommend that proper access be made and that I be called back for further evaluation. I don’t like it when I am forced to become one of the things that keep the process from moving along.

Plus, the more difficult the access, the more likely nobody else has been willing to go in there either, and the more likely there will be things that need to be discovered.

By Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle

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October 18, 2015 by Charles Buell

The fireplace that went missing.

While there are some site considerations that happen around the home on the ground, the inspection process starts in earnest on the roof. If there is a chimney that extends through the roof, the chimney will be inspected at that time.

Here is a picture of a chimney on a recent inspection.

Of course I am checking the mortar joints, the condition of the mortar cap, looking for cracks, checking for loose bricks/stones and noting whether there are hats and spark arrestors/vermin screens or not. I am also interested in the condition of roof flashings and chimney counterflashings.

I am also looking down the flues–if there are not hats that prevent it–to see what I can tell about the condition of the flues. At this point I might note whether there is air movement indicative of dampers being open or missing. (Of course the smell of brownies cooking might be hint as well.) I could also see if there was debris or other encumbrances inside the flues–at least in the visible areas.

I am also counting flues. In the previous picture what can I tell? There appears to be a flue for the furnace (warm air was flowing out of that one and the smell of gas combustion products was noted)–that is the left one in the picture. From there I note that there are three other flues–indicating that I am going to have three fireplaces to check. Now they might be for wood stoves etc but I know there are going to be three places in the home where wood burning appliances or fireplaces are present.

In the home I readily found the basement family room fireplace, the upper living room fireplace—but the third fireplace had gone missing.

I did ultimately find it. In the context of the kitchen remodel it had been enclosed in a pantry closet. The fireplace was certainly no longer functional, as there was all manner of combustible materials installed around the opening and the hearth was covered over by the wood flooring. The damper was still functional, and “open,” so it was functioning to exhaust heat from the home on a year round basis.

The fire-box now makes a nice shelf for storage.

It is OK to abandon the fireplace–but it would be better if it was REALLY abandoned–closed up and sealed.

By Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle

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November 12, 2014 by Charles Buell

Is your fireplace wasting energy?

This was a question I was asked frequently as a kid.

Kids have little concept of hot and cold—let alone what it takes to heat a home. Leaving doors open as they run outside is common. It always has been common, and probably always will be common.

But doors and windows are not the only thing that wastes energy when they are left open.

As an inspector, one of the most common things I find left open on a home is the fireplace damper. When the wind blows past the top of the chimney it creates a negative pressure on the chimney resulting in drawing huge amounts of conditioned air out of the home—especially if windows and doors are left open.

This is incredibly wasteful in both summer and winter when we are expending energy to either heat or cool the home.

I would bet that more than 50% of older style fireplaces that I inspect have their damper open at the time of inspection. Of course modern fireplaces have glass doors that help with this problem. Most likely the best solution is a gas insert that will actually contribute to the heating of the home instead of making your house more like a barn.

Do you know if your fireplace damper is open or closed right now?

By Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle

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