Smoke Chamber Parging
Professional Smoke Chamber Parging Can Restore The Safety & Efficiency Of Your System
When smoke wafts into your home instead of leaving through the chimney, a night by the fireside can be anything but relaxing and enjoyable. But you remembered to open your damper and you know it’s in good working condition, so what’s causing your smoke problem? The team here at TN Fireplace and Chimney has years of professional chimney and fireplace experience, and what we often find is that the smoke chamber is need of repair and restoration.
What’s The Smoke Chamber & How Does It Get Damaged?
If you were to ever look up into your chimney from your fireplace, you would notice an inverted funnel just above the fireplace. This is known as the smoke chamber and it’s designed to send smoke up into the chimney so it can exit the home quickly. But if the smoke chamber isn’t smooth and smoke-tight, smoke can linger in this area and end up coming back down into your home through the fireplace. Commonly, we find the following issues:
- Corbelled Smoke Chambers. Instead of being smooth and straight, corbelled smoke chambers consist of steps or levels leading up to the flue. These steps can actually reduce air flow and present resistance that prevents smoke from moving swiftly through the smoke chamber. Over time, these steps can become even more jagged and cause even more resistance.
- Hole-Riddled & Cracked Smoke Chambers. The heat of the fire and the corrosive nature of smoke and byproducts can do a number on the smoke chamber, leaving it riddled with holes and cracks. Like the steps of a corbelled smoke chamber, holes and cracks can affect how quickly the smoke travels up and out of the chimney. Additionally, these holes and cracks can allow heat and stray sparks to come into contact with nearby framing in walls.
A damaged smoke chamber won’t just decrease the efficiency of your fireplace or stove or lead to smoke problems and possible house fires, it can also increase the amount of creosote you have in your chimney and fireplace. Creosote is a sticky, highly flammable substance that’s created when smoke cools and settles on its way up and out of the chimney. Not only is creosote incredibly damaging to the chimney, but it can also restrict air flow in the flue and easily cause a chimney fire.
How Is The Smoke Chamber Repaired?
When a smoke chamber is damaged and inefficient, our team uses a specialized smoke chamber repair sealant (either Chamber Coat or HeatShield®) to smooth over the entire surface and seal it — this is known as smoke chamber parging. During the process, we work to make sure the shape and surface of the smoke chamber is going to effectively encourage smoke to quickly enter the flue and exit the chimney. The result: a smoke-tight smoke chamber and a safer, more efficient chimney system.
If you think your smoke chamber may be damaged, give us a call at (865) 345-2797. We’ll gladly inspect your chimney system and let you know whether or not it’s time to have your smoke chamber parged smooth. We’ll even provide photos of our findings so you can see the smoke chamber before and after our work. Wherever you are in the greater Knoxville, TN area, call TN Fireplace and Chimney or fill out our online appointment request form and we’ll send one of our Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA)-certified professionals out to your home ASAP.
Even if you need a complete chimney rebuild, our chimney repair and restoration crews are standing by to help.
