When a Collinsville, IL homeowner has a chimney, there isn’t much thought about it, unless something goes wrong. This can be the same for an air conditioning system, or anything other machines in your house. One thing that homeowners may never think they will have to accomplish is repointing their chimney. What does that even mean? Has this ever been said to you when discussing your chimney? If not, continue reading on, and let our experts walk you through the process. It may or not be time for you to follow these steps, to use your chimney to the best of its ability.
What Is Repointing?
Repointing a chimney is the process of removing old mortar and applying new ones to your said chimney. What is mortar? For those who don’t know, this is the sealant that is holding your bricks together. Making sure that they stand up against winds, weather, and anything else that could knock the chimney over. If you are seeing cracks or parts of this flaking off, it’s time to apply new mortar to the chimney.
Getting Repointing Started
How does this process start you might ask? We’ll walk you through it. The first step is figuring out what type of mortar you need for your chimney. The two main types that our team knows of are Portland and lime-based. Not sure which one you need? That’s where our team comes in to help! Bring a piece of your cracked mortar and we can determine which one your home was using before! Mixing the two together is definitely not something we recommend. Make sure that you have the correct one before continuing on.
Taking Off old Mortar
One thing you will need to do is take off the old mortar. You want to start fresh, so that old doesn’t mix with new. Use a grinder for this step. This will ensure a clean and easy job. Begin on the damaged edges, and move along the chimney as you go.
Remove any debris with a stiff brush, to ensure a clean and easy removal process. Once you have finished this process, it’s best to soak the mortar in water overnight, for a clean slate. After that, you are free to lather on the new mortar. Make sure your mix is the consistency of peanut butter, and begin! This will take time and patience, a great job, will not be done fast and sloppy. Take your time for the best results.
Our team at Clean Sweep Chimney Service wants you to have the best chimney you can possibly have. If you have any questions about chimneys or need help with your mortar removal process, give our team a call today! We are happy to help whenever and wherever we can!
