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Good Grief, is it Time to Replace Your Chimney Liner?

A chimney sweep completes your chimney inspection and tells you it’s time to replace your chimney liner. Pained, you dive into the first of five possible stages of homeowners’ grief. In the denial stage, you may ask, what’s the problem with my current flue liner? You bypass anger if your CSIA-certified chimney sweep is with trusted Guardian Chimney Sweep of the Houston TX area. The bargaining stage asks, is the expense of a new chimney liner really necessary? To save time, you skip the depression stage. In acceptance you ask, what kinds of replacement chimney liners are there? Answers follow.

chimney flue inspection, Magnolia txWhy it’s Time to Replace Your Chimney Liner

There are three common reasons you may get the news that a chimney liner replacement is needed. Those reasons are deterioration, installation of a new appliance, and property transfer. Details are provided below.

Deterioration

The chimney liner originally built into your home was likely a clay tile liner. Most builders use clay tiles because they are both inexpensive and highly durable. Clay tile liners can last a decent amount of time, but this depends on various factors. For instance, how frequently do you use your masonry fireplace, and how well do you keep up with chimney maintenance?

No matter what type of chimney liner you have, it will eventually deteriorate. The cause of chimney liner damage might be age, moisture intrusion, or extreme temperatures, such as the intense heat caused by a chimney fire.

Your Current Liner Doesn’t Fit a New Appliance

Has a new fireplace or heating stove been installed inside your masonry fireplace? If so, the appliance must be fit to a flue of the correct size, per manufacturers’ instructions. If the chimney liner is too large or too small, the appliance will be inefficient. Other problems can also occur if the chimney liner is the wrong size, such as a buildup of condensation inside the liner. The potential issues partly depend on whether wood or gas fuels the appliance.

A New Liner is Needed for a Property Transfer

Your chimney liner must be able to pass a chimney inspection if you are making a property transfer. It is a requirement in the sale of a home.

Why is a Chimney Liner Necessary, Anyway?

A chimney liner must be intact for safety reasons. There are two primary functions of a chimney liner:

  1. Prevent combustible materials near the chimney from igniting, and
  2. Protect the occupants of the home from potentially deadly combustion fumes.

chimney liner replacement, houston txTypes of Replacement Chimney Liners

Clay tile liners make sense during construction, but the replacement of damaged clay tiles is expensive and impractical. Partial tear-down and a masonry rebuild of the chimney are necessary steps in replacing clay tiles. In the meantime, other tiles are at risk of deteriorating anytime.

Stainless steel chimney liners are durable and often come with a lifetime warranty. When chimney relining is necessary, chimney sweeps most frequently recommend a metal liner.

Contact Guardian Chimney Sweep Today

The chimney sweeps at Guardian Chimney Sweep are CSIA-certified. With their high-quality workmanship that is backed by a 100% guarantee, they are certainly not known for giving homeowners grief. Instead, keeping up with chimney maintenance and knowing is it time to replace your chimney liner is easy with help from the pros at Guardian.

Contact Guardian Chimney Sweep to schedule chimney liner replacement, chimney inspections, masonry repair, chimney maintenance, chimney cleaning, and more. At any number below, call us today.

Toll-free: (888) 306-6069

Conroe: (936) 271-9781

Houston: (713) 401-2011