Protecting your Home with Chimney Waterproofing

One thing that many homeowners never consider is maintaining their chimneys. It’s one of those things that is out of sight and out of mind. They enjoy sitting by a blazing fire during the winter months, they keep the fireplace and hearth clean, and they may even hire someone periodically to come out to their homes and clean the inside of the chimney, but few of them give any thought to keeping their chimney’s exterior from crumbling away. If this sounds like you, it’s time you took a look at the condition your chimney is in, get it repaired if necessary, and coat it with a chimney waterproofing product.

When you stop to think about it, the possibility of water damaging your masonry chimney makes sense. After all, it’s the only piece of your house that sticks up past the roof line where it takes the brunt of rain and snow storms. Without protection, you could end up with major damage necessitating a costly overhaul. Therefore, having your chimney waterproofed seems a small price to pay for averting this huge expense. Besides, you want your chimney to look nice instead of being an eyesore on the top of your house where everyone can see it.

Prior to waterproofing, make sure that all of the joints in the mortar are good. Cracks or chunks missing may mean you need to have some tuckpointing work done; however, if you only have minor cracks, it’s possible to brush on a special type of caulk that will fill the cracks to prevent them from further water damage. Even without cracks, masonry materials are porous and can absorb a lot of water. This absorption can result in moisture leaking to the interior of your chimney. Eventually, the integrity of your chimney will deteriorate.

Naturally, you want to address the problem before any major damage can take place. This means that you should waterproof a new chimney immediately and repeat the procedure per the time table recommended on the package. If you purchase an older home, however, you need to make sure that the chimney has been maintained properly to ensure against major repairs. In fact, it wouldn’t hurt to ask to inspect the chimney before you buy a house now that you know how costly rebuilding a chimney can be.

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