Masonry Repair & Restoration in Central, PA

We're the Central PA Chimney Masonry Repair Specialists

Returning a deteriorating, unsafe chimney to full code compliance quickly and economically is what we like to do at Anderson’s Chimney and Masonry Services. If you are looking for chimney repair in PA, trust your fireplace to a chimney specialist.

From the day your masonry chimney is built, it becomes structurally vulnerable. A masonry chimney is constantly exposed to the elements. Not following through with preventative maintenance, mortar pulling away from the brick and time all play a factor in how your masonry chimney holds up.

Masonry

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Firebox Rebuilding and Repairs

Fireboxes are specially shaped to achieve the best draft and to radiate heat. Most general brick and block masons are not trained or have any experience building proper fireboxes. The mason’s at Anderson’s Chimney and Masonry Services have extensive training and experience in building various styles of fireboxes.

The Rumford Firebox eliminates turbulence with its narrow throat and shallow hearth. In doing so, it pulls the smoke up the chimney efficiently with little heat loss while radiating the heat back into the room.

Firebox

The Prior Fire Firebox was created by Master Mason, Chris Prior. Chris holds CSIA credentials and has extensive knowledge and experience in the chimney and masonry field. He designed a firebox similar to the Rumford but with an actual hump on the back wall that radiates the heat down towards the wood.

Traditional style fireboxes have little or no angle to them and usually have a flat back wall. They basically look like a 3-sided box. This type of design takes the heat and moves it up the chimney instead of radiating it back into your home.

We highly recommend The Prior Fire and The Rumford fireboxes to our customers. Give us a call and one of our experienced Chimney Masons will come out and give you an estimate. We will go over your needs and concerns and we will tell you what we feel is the best option.

Anderson’s Chimney and Masonry Services also offers partial rebuilds of fireboxes when needed. Your firebox takes a lot of abuse and brick can weaken or get loose and mortar can disintegrate. With annual inspections, we can stay on top of any small repairs before they become big rebuild problems.

chimney repair

Chimney Masonry Repair and Rebuilding

Do you realize that something as simple as a hairline crack in your chimneys brick can easily grow to some serious damage? With an annual inspection you have a strong chance at catching a simple chimney repair job before it turns into a major rebuild project. Your chimney sits up there all alone without protection. Water and the elements can seep into your masonry and not only continue to leak into your home, but freeze and crack even more. When we do a chimney inspection we check from where you burn to the top of the chimney.

We also check the exterior of your structure. Annual inspections keep smaller issues from turning into big problems. Usually if a few individual bricks are spalling or cracked we can tooth them out and replace them. Once issues go untreated for any length of time and a majority of the brick are compromised, your chimney structure needs to be rebuilt, either from the roof line up or from the ground up. With any chimney rebuild we keep the original design and try to use any existing brick you already have that are still in good condition. If needed, we can usually match your existing brick with brick from one of our masonry yards.

In business for over 30 years, Anderson’s Chimney & Masonry provides a variety of professional Masonry Repair Services in:
Camp Hill
Carlise
Hanover
Harrisburg
Hershey
Lancaster
New Cumberland
York

Cause & Effect

Repointing / Tuckpointing

Repointing and tuckpointing replaces missing or loose mortar that holds the bricks of your masonry chimney together. Occasional repair of any mortar joints is expected over the life of your brick masonry but masonry chimneys are especially susceptible to the elements and deterioration. Our Masons select the proper mortar mix to match your existing mortar color and brick profile.

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Smoke Chamber Parging

The smoke chamber is the sloped section of the fireplace above the firebox. It is what directs the smoke and gases up the flue of your chimney. Not only is it usually the hardest area to get to or to work on, it is easily one of the most overlooked areas in the chimney system. It is also the area of the chimney that is exposed to the highest temperatures. More often than not, it is built or finished incorrectly.

The National Fire Protection Association Code Book (NFPA 211) states, “The inner surfaces of the smoke chamber shall be parge coated smooth, with an insulating refractory mortar.”

International Residential Code (IRC) states, “When the inside surface of the smoke chamber is formed by corbeled masonry, the inside surface shall be parged smooth.”

Parging the smoke chamber is important because it allows the gasses and smoke to escape quickly and efficiently, which in turn makes less creosote.

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Spalling Brick

Spalling bricks happen when water enters through the brick and the brick starts to crumble. If not taken care of, the face (front) of the brick can pop off.

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Mortar Chimney Crowns

The top of your chimney is constantly exposed to extreme weather and potential hazards: water penetration, access by birds and animals, and debris. A properly constructed mortar chimney crown (wash) and the addition of a chimney cap help prevent these frustrating and dangerous problems.

Crown Repair

Improperly built crowns are a common problem. If yours is cracked or poorly constructed, allowing water penetration or posing a fire hazard, we’ll build a proper masonry crown wash that gives you peace of mind.

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Masonry Restoration

Bricks that are cracked or spall offer no support to your masonry chimney or wall. We can remove individual defective bricks to prevent further damage to your structure. We can usually match your brick and mortar with new bricks from various supply houses we team up with.

Waterproofing

A specifically formulated waterproofing agent, Chimney Saver®, when professionally applied to the chimney’s outer surface, provides a ten year manufacturer warranty protection against water damage.

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National Standards

As certified sweeps, we are held to national standards of the NFPA. NFPA 211 for wood burning, NFPA 54 for gas appliances and NFPA 31 for oil appliances. All of our work is always conducted professionally and in compliance with these and any other local government codes that apply. Our professional opinions will be based on our experience and education.

CALL TODAY! (717) 975-3526

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