Brick chimney repair in Mobile

A chimney stands up above the roof with nothing around it. Rain hits all four sides and the top. In a place as wet as Mobile, with storms that drive rain sideways off the Gulf, that is a lot of water on a small piece of brick. And chimneys tend to get looked at last, because nobody climbs up there to check.

Plenty of Mobile houses have chimneys that see little use, or none. A chimney nobody uses still takes the rain, so its brick and joints still need upkeep.

Most chimney leaks come from one of four places, and sometimes from more than one at once.

• The crown, the cement or mortar cap on top around the flue, which cracks and lets water straight down inside
• Open mortar joints, worst on the side facing the weather
• Spalled and loose brick, often near the top where the chimney stays wettest
• The metal flashing where the chimney meets the roof

The crown is the slab across the top of the chimney that sheds water off and away from the brick. On a lot of chimneys it was made with plain mortar that cracks as it ages and bakes in the sun. Once it cracks, every rain runs down inside the chimney and into the top courses of brick.

Donald repairs cracked crowns. A crown that is cracked clean through or breaking up may need more than a patch, and he will tell you which kind yours is.

Chimney brick fails the same ways wall brick does, only faster. Faces pop off, joints turn sandy and open up, and brick near the top works loose. Donald replaces damaged brick and repoints the joints so the stack sheds water again.

On older Mobile houses the chimney is often old soft brick, and it needs a mortar softer than the brick. Hard cement patches on an old chimney tend to make the brick around them crumble.

A chimney that leans, or brick at the top loose enough to move by hand, needs attention soon, because loose brick can fall. If yours looks like that, keep people clear of that side of the house and send Donald a photo from the ground.

Chimney leaks often show up indoors before anyone looks at the outside. These are the usual ones.

• Water stains on the ceiling or wall beside the chimney
• A musty smell from the fireplace, worse after rain
• Rust in the firebox or on the damper
• Damp or peeling paint and plaster near the chimney
• White salt stains on the chimney brick up in the attic

The metal flashing where the chimney meets the roof is usually the roofer's part of the job. Donald works on the brick, the joints and the crown. If he sees that the flashing is part of the leak, he will tell you, so you can get the right person on each piece of it.

Metal caps and screens over the flue are their own item. Ask Donald about those when you send photos.

After a hurricane or a tropical storm, look at the chimney from the ground first. Wind and falling limbs can knock brick loose. If it looks damaged, stay off the roof and send photos.