Chimney repairs and rebuilds

Why chimneys need repair

We carry out chimney repairs in Dunstable, where we are based in Bidwell, and across Houghton Regis, Totternhoe, Harpenden, Wheathampstead and Redbourn.

A chimney stack is the most exposed brickwork on a house. It catches wind and driving rain on every side, it heats and cools with the fire below, and on older houses it may have stood for a century without much attention. The usual signs of trouble are mortar washing out of the joints, bricks with flaking faces, cracked flaunching around the pots, a stack that leans, or damp patches on a chimney breast inside.

Most of these problems are cheaper to deal with early. Once water gets into the brickwork, frost forces the faces off the bricks and the joints open further each winter.

The repairs we carry out

Repointing is the most common chimney repair. We rake out loose and failed mortar to a consistent depth and repoint with a mortar suited to the bricks, so the joints shed water again. Our chimney repointing guide explains that job step by step.

Bricks that have spalled or cracked can be cut out and replaced with matching bricks. The flaunching, the sloped mortar cap that holds the pots and throws water off the top, often cracks and is re-formed. Pots can be reset or capped if the flue is no longer used.

Where a stack leans, has lost a lot of brick or is loose at the top, a partial chimney rebuild takes it down to sound brickwork and rebuilds it above that. A full chimney rebuild takes the stack down to the roof line. Our chimney repair guide covers how to tell which of these a stack needs.

Access and the roof

Chimney work needs safe access, usually scaffolding around the stack, and that is part of planning the job. Where the stack meets the roof, flashing and tiles are disturbed during a rebuild and have to be made good, so we discuss that with you at the survey. If you are having roof work done anyway, it is often sensible to repair the chimney while the scaffolding is up.

Before you book

Tell us what you have noticed and where, such as damp on a particular wall, debris in the fireplace or loose material in the gutter. If the chimney is in use, mention the type of fire or stove. We will look at the stack and give you a free estimate that explains what we recommend and why.

Photos taken from the garden or the street, especially zoomed in on the top of the stack, are a useful start and help us see the condition of the pots, flaunching and joints before we visit. They do not replace a proper look, but they let us plan access and talk about likely options sooner.