Smoke Chamber Repair and parging
Making sure you are code compliant
What is A fireplace Smoke Chamber?
Smoke Chambers are usually found just above the fireplace damper. They are used to aid in funneling the smoke or gasses from the firebox to the flue. Furthermore they are often what supports the flue above. Needless to say, they play a very important role in your fireplace.
Smoke Chamber Cutaway 1
Smoke Chamber Cutaway 2
What is Smoke Chamber Parging?
Smoke chamber parging simply put is smoothing the walls out. Per the International Code Council "The inside surface shall be parged smooth with refractory mortar conforming to ASTM C199." In most cases when the mason builds the smoke chamber they do a stair case with the bricks to meet the dimensions of the flue. This of course leaves the unwanted stair casing. In order to bring the system to code compliance a coating must be used to fill all of the steps, creating a smooth transition from the damper opening to the flue.
Un-Parged Smoke Chamber
Parged Smoke Chamber
Double Sided Fireplace Smoke Chamber Parge
What Happens If I Don't Parge My Smoke Chamber?
Poor venting performance and heavy creosote build up are the main issues that will occur. While your fireplace may seem to work just fine, the fact that the smoke roles off of every interaction with the corbeling brick it tends to leave a lot of creosote build up behind. Many of the fireplaces that have experienced a chimney fire have un-parged smoke chambers. This is not to say that it will eliminate the chance of fire, but it will help to minimize soot buildup. Another common issue is smoke back up into the home. As stated above the smoke rolls off of every stair cased brick. This slows the smoke allowing more of it to linger in the lower part of the fireplace.
Who Repairs and Parges Smoke Chambers?
A-1 Safety Chimney Service has been parging and repairing smoke chambers for over 35 Years. With over 250 years of combined experience, you can rest assured the job will be done correct. A-1 Safety proudly services the Chicagoland area and surrounding suburbs. If you would like to schedule an appointment for any of your venting needs, please contact us.
