Fireplace Repair in Lakeland, FL

Fireplace repair in Lakeland homes

Two fireplace types dominate here. Pre-1960 Lakeland and Bartow homes have open masonry fireboxes with clay tile liners, and plenty of those flues are unlined or crumbling. Subdivision homes from the 1980s through the 2000s have factory-built metal fireboxes vented through Class A double- or triple-wall pipe. That pipe runs inside a framed, sided chase topped with a sheet-metal cover. Most of our repair work starts at that cover.

Flat chase covers pond rainwater. They rust through from the top down. Water then tracks along the pipe and into the firebox, and the refractory panels and the metal surround start staining and rusting. A replacement cover gets a cross break so water sheds. Caps go missing in summer storms. Crowns crack from thermal shock and lightning. Flashing at the roof-to-chase joint fails after wind-driven rain and soaks drywall beside the mantel.

Animals matter more than creosote in Polk County. Chimney swifts and squirrels pack nests into open flues. Exclusion and a proper cap solve it for good.

Gas log complaints are often installation errors. Vented sets dropped on wood-burning grates, dampers rusted shut, no clamp holding the damper open. Smoke spillage in newer tight homes usually traces to no outside combustion air, not a dirty flue.