What you need to know to keep your fireplace and chimney safe for use

Dennis Patterson enjoys a glass of Sangiovese wine in front of the fireplace. So when he bought an 84-year-old home in Merion Station in February 2020, having the wood-burning fireplace inspected was a top priority.

“I noticed some bricks on the top of the chimney needed some attention,” said Patterson, a law professor at Rutgers University. “Like everything in a house, you want to make sure your furnace works, your air conditioner works, and your fireplace works. All these systems are important.”

Patterson was among the many working from home during the pandemic who found comfort in front of the fireplace. People who may not have used their fireplaces much had more time or felt safer being home to monitor a wood-burning fire as it went out.

More use led to a demand for routine maintenance and repairs, and the recent surge of home sales — many with fireplaces — led to a greater need for inspections.

Patterson’s chimney was found to have flammable glazed creosote buildup that needed to be removed with a chemical treatment, a two-day process. In addition, holes were repaired and a ceramic restoration applied. The age of his chimney made the job trickier, and the repairs added up to about $5,000.

For many people, fireplace upkeep brings to mind Mary Poppins’ favorite chimney sweep, Bert. The industry, however, has moved toward the term technician in recent years, as most perform many chimney-related tasks besides cleaning, said Russ Dimmitt, director of education for the Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA), based in Plainfield, Ind.

“Typically, chimney technicians are booked out for weeks, but during the pandemic, it’s been months,” Dimmitt said. “There’s been exponential growth in demand.”

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That demand has kept Joseph Ochal, owner of Chimney Scientists in Conshohocken, who serviced Patterson’s chimney, busier than ever. Last year, his company increased the number of inspectors from two to four, was booked out about a month and a half, and did about double the business it had before the pandemic.

“We saw a lot of customers with a lot more creosote and debris inside their chimneys than we had in previous years because they’d been using them so much more,” Ochal said.

The National Fire Protection Association recommends annual fireplace and chimney inspections, even if the fireplace isn’t in use, Dimmitt said. Moisture is a major cause of damage to chimneys, especially in climates with freezing weather at night and thawing during the day. Brick and stone absorb a lot of water, and when water freezes, it expands, which can cause the masonry to break the chimney apart. Leaks can develop, especially in older homes.

“Every year, unfortunately, we see tragedies where a chimney will collapse inside itself,” Dimmitt said. “You can’t see it from the outside, but a flue tile will corrode or a brick will fall and block where the flue gases are supposed to be exiting the home. Consequently, the carbon monoxide will back up into the home, and folks don’t know that’s going on.”

It’s hard to communicate what’s unseen in the wall without pictures and diagrams, said Ochal, who places a camera inside the chimney for a detailed view that he can show the customer. He also uses drones at times to get pictures of the chimney exterior.

“The goal is customer education,” he said. “The chimney is just like a car. You have to take care of it.”

Chimney Scientists charges $152 for a basic inspection, $299 for an inspection and cleaning, both including 20 to 40 pictures or diagrams.

While gas- and wood-burning fireplaces both require annual maintenance, there are differences. In a wood-burning unit, Ochal stresses the importance of using dry wood to avoid costly repairs such as Patterson’s. The moisture from wet wood creates a lot of smoke, which can cause condensation in the chimney, creating creosote, which is flammable.

Gas appliances that are functioning correctly don’t produce carbon soot that accumulates in the chimney, but you do need to ensure that all of the parts are working properly.

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“The pilot assemblies, one of the main mechanical functions of the fireplace, are sensitive and tend to get corrosive,” said Jeff Blanchard, owner of American Gas Fireplace Service in Washington Township. “That debris builds up a resistance on the functionality of the fireplace that can be prevented with general maintenance and cleaning.”

The design of the fireplace components, down to the specific log placement, is important. If a homeowner removes the logs, perhaps to relight a pilot blown out by the wind, those logs must be placed back in the correct order. Logs placed improperly could force black soot to release within, and at times outside, of the fireplace.

“You have a controlled fire in your home. It’s convenient and beautiful and easy to take for granted,” Blanchard said. “But it’s got to be controlled and safe.”

Dimmitt encourages fireplace owners to have their service done at the end of the season when service technicians are often more available. Visit the CSIA website and enter your zip code to find a certified professional chimney technician.

Patterson agrees. He had three different chimney maintenance companies come before choosing Chimney Scientists.

“One guy purported to clean the fireplace, but all he managed to do was put soot all over my living room, so I had to get that cleaned and find somebody competent,” he said. “Now I can sit here with my glass of Sangiovese, enjoy the warmth of the fireplace, and know it’s all safe and secure.”