Consistent Chimney Concrete Crown Repair Services

A broken or damaged chimney crown is not just unsightly; it’s a potential hazard that can cause more extensive problems. Water leaking through cracks can cause structural damage that comes with a high price tag to repair. Without chimney concrete crown repair services, you face additional problems like rotting wood, mold, or a chimney collapse.

Guardian Chimney Solutions LLC is a team of specialists dedicated to preventing such problematic situations. Our certified chimney professionals specialize in chimney concrete crown repair services. We’ll create a chimney that performs at its best.

Understanding the Need for Chimney Concrete Crown Repair Services

The crown is the component that seals off the top of your chimney. This seal keeps water and other external factors outside where they belong. Over time, a concrete crown can crack because it’s constantly exposed to the weather. At this point, you need to choose between a repair and a replacement.

Sometimes, the damage is extensive enough that a replacement is your only option. However, if you call Guardian Chimney Solutions LLC before it gets to that point, we may be able to salvage it with our chimney concrete crown repair services.

We Provide Professional Chimney Solutions

At Guardian Chimney Solutions LLC, we use high-quality materials to ensure your repair offers a long-lasting solution. Contact us today to schedule your free estimate or schedule your repair!

Chimney Crowns Minnesota • Repair • Restorations

The Guardian Chimney System

Under the chimney flue cap, lies the chimney crown, covering the entire top of the chimney opening except for the chimney flues that allow the combustion byproducts to escape. The chimney crown is made from cement that seals the top of the chimney chase off, to protect the chimney interior. A chimney crown in poor condition will allow moisture into the chimney system. Water deteriorates the elements of the chimney, the sides of the chimney can be protected by a waterproofing process, but a chimney cap and crown in good condition will protect the interior of the system.

Protecting the inner workings of your chimney extends its life and mitigates the risk of countless common chimney problems. When a chimney has a missing chimney cap or deteriorating chimney crown covering the top of the chimney, this provides a direct entrance for animals and all types of weather conditions. When you allow this opening to remain uncovered, the interior of the chimney must withstand harsh treatment from the outdoors, which evidently results in costly repairs for the homeowner.

Limestone Drip Edge Option

Limestone drip ledge is a solid ledge applied to the edges of the brick cavity, measuring around 8″ in width, 6 ft long with a 2″ reveal on the facing. This ledge works well for the fact the overhang distance is adjustable and chiseled edge provides a wonderful upscale aesthetics as well.

Spanish Tile Roof Chimney Crown Drip Ledge

The Chimney Crown Drip Ledge is one of the vital components to the chimney crown replacement system. Without a sufficient drip ledge on a chimney crown the water has no deterrent from dripping down the front side of the bricks and posing a serious threat to the integrity of the structure. The effects of this action can lead to spalling of the brick and erosion of the mortar joints.

As the water trickles down the brick it will find crevices or cracks and penetrate the structure, once this occurs the water can find a pocket and pool up and if the temperature is below freezing the pools of water can freeze and expand in the act of expanding water behind bricks can and will inevitably compromise the integrity of the masonry materials at hand.

Flue Tile Expansion Joint

The Expansion Joint is a crucial point in the chimney reconstruction process . The expansion joint is a thin 3/8 inch layer of a foam like substance. By installing this material you are ensuring your flue tile has the proper room to expand and contract. As you light your fire in your fire place the smoke raises up the flue tiles, during the heating stage your tile will heat up and swell. When the expansion happens there needs to be the proper room between the concrete crown and the tile to accommodate the growth.

Without the expansion joint the crown will crack, when a crack is present water will attack that area and start the erosion process. Once the installation of the concrete against the foam is complete, we trim the foam back to the height of the concrete crown bed, then use a pliable sealant around the perimeter of the tile to create a water tight environment for the expansion joint. The sealant must remain pliable, no glues or caulking should be used, do to the fact that when it drys it can’t mirror the expansion process, glues and caulking will dry solid and crack. Only pliable materials should be used as sealant for maximum protection.

False Flue Tile

The use of a false flue tiles are strictly for aesthetic purposes. In the early years installers made the mistake of installing the false flue tiles into the cement. This process posses a major risk to the integrity of your chimney crown. Most installers fill the empty cavity of the false tiles with miscellaneous bricks and debris, then cap it of with a layer of mortar.

As the mortar begins to age small fractures begin to form and water will find its way in and begin to pool up, as the temperature drops that water will freeze and when water freezes it expands, that action will cause the false tile to crack the crown. All though false flue tile are strictly aesthetic we have developed a process to give the home owner the option to keep the look they have always had. By installing a new tile with expansion joint as well as a made to fit top flashing glued and applied to avoid the water entry into the false tile.

Wire Mesh / Re bar

Wire Mesh / Re bar: Before applying the concrete to the chimney we install a wire mesh / re bar to theconcrete bed, this process will insure a strengthening factor to the crown. As the concrete drys around the wire mesh the crown gains the strength of the steel mesh by weaving between the waffle like material and then becoming one solid unit.