Flue Problems
The flue is the tube or passageway designed to evacuate the smoke and products of combustion from your stove or fireplace to the outdoors. They are made of clay, pumice, metal and a few other materials, as well. It is very important that your flue is in good condition in order to safely perform its intended function - keeping your home safe from fire and carbon monoxide. Cracks, mortar gaps, separations and deterioration all pose potential hazards for your home and family.
SmartSweep uses a Chim-Scan® internal inspection camera system for this purpose. After scanning your flue, we will provide you with a report explaining any defects or potential hazards that are found, and we can show you photos of the damage, too. So you, the homeowner, can see the pictures of the damaged areas for yourself. And as the saying goes, “a picture is worth a thousand words.”
If there is flue damage, SmartSweep will recommend the repairs that are right for you, whether that means replacing your old damaged flue with a properly installed, UL-listed stainless steel flue liner, or repairing your existing damaged flue with the marvelous new technology of the HeatShield® Cerfractory Flue Joint-Repair and Resurfacing System. So give us a call to inspect your flue and enire chimney system. You’ll be glad you did. Your family’s safety is the more important than anything else.
Above and below are examples of a fractured flue, a missing mortar joint, and a badly spalled flue tile with holes in it, all potential hazards.
This flue has some severe flue spalling at the top. Spalling is when water is absorbed into the clay flue tile material and then it breaks apart because of the Minnesota freeze-thaw cycle. This is preventable with a chimney cap that keeps water out. This entire flue should be scanned thoroughly for further spalling damage down lower in the chimney.