Our staff at Mr. Smokestack would like to not only be sure your fireplace and chimney work safely and properly, but we also want your fireplace to look the best it can. The most show-stopping part of the room, your fireplace is an area you want to maintain both in its appearance and in its safety. You may have noticed cracks in your firebox or even that the bricks or stones around and inside your fireplace look dark and smudgy. We would like to tell you how we can help you with these problems by sharing a couple of fireplace and firebox restoration options we provide.
FIREBOX REPLACEMENT
The first step to replacing your firebox is knowing what kind of firebox your chimney has, and you will need to discover what kind of fireplace you have in your home. According to the Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA), there are two types of fireplaces: masonry and pre-fabricated metal. To know exactly which type of firebox you have, all you have to do is take a close look at your fireplace and maybe even peek up into your chimney.
What does a masonry firebox look like?
Made only from brick and stone, a masonry firebox is easily identifiable by its yellowish firebrick around the fireplace in the room. Looking up your chimney past the damper, an affair built from brick in a pyramid shape will be visible. Above the roof, you will also see a brick chimney. If you see chipped bricks and mortar, the experienced masons at Mr. Smokestack can completely rebuild your masonry firebox and even restore the original one by re-pointing the mortar and bricks if at all possible.
What about a pre-fabricated firebox?
A pre-fabricated fireplace will have metal seen all around the firebox in the fireplace within the room. Similarly, you will see more metal when you look up past the damper, and its chimney will also be made of metal. However, most of the time people will surround it with brick above the roof to look like a typical chimney. If you notice cracks in the metal firebox, often you will only need to have the cracked or damaged metal panel pieces replaced. However, as these pieces must be properly resized and cut, it is not recommended for untrained people to take this task into their own hands as you may do more damage with an incorrectly-sized piece of metal. Therefore, this job should only be done by certified chimney technicians, such as our guys at Mr. Smokestack.
PAINT N PEEL FIREPLACE CLEANER
What exactly is Paint N Peel Fireplace Cleaner?
A water-based cleaning poultice, Paint N Peel Fireplace Cleaner easily removes unattractive smoke, soot, dirt, and creosote stains from masonry fireplace fronts and hearths. Environmentally-friendly, this cleaner leaves behind no noxious odors and can be used indoors and outdoors.
How does Paint N Peel work?
Using our special tools, our chimney sweeps will paint on a thick coating of the poultice and allow it to dry for six to twelve hours. During its drying process, the layer becomes a tough, elastic topcoat on your fireplace surfaces. Once it has thoroughly dried, our sweeps will then peel away the layer to reveal clean bricks and stones. We will even let you help us peel away the dried layer.
Have questions about these two fireplace restoration options? Contact Mr. Smokestack if it is time to spruce up the appearance of your hearth.
