Home Safe Hearth & Chimney's Blog
Chimney caps are an important aspect of owning a fireplace. They are placed at the top of the chimney and work to protect it from many hazardous elements. Any fireplace would benefit from having a chimney cap and, as a homeowner, it will save you a lot of time, money, and stress throughout the months and years ahead. Read more…?
What is the CSIA?
The CSIA (Chimney Safety Institute of America) is a non-profit organization that strives to promote safety in regards to your chimney. The CSIA is known for its integrity and is highly-esteemed by professionals across the United States. Their mission is to educate homeowners on proper chimney care and guide them in taking proper precautions with their fireplaces, ensuring that their home and family are safe throughout the burning season. Read more…?
When it comes to decorating your chimney, growing ivy around it may seem like the obvious choice. This plant helps add to the old charm often associated with chimneys and encourages that more rustic look that many people love. Yet, when it comes down to it, ivy is not ideal for chimney décor and will likely cause more damage and expense than it is worth. Continue reading for some of the main issues involved with growing ivy on your chimney. Read more…?
Your chimney’s flue is an often overlooked but very important component to your fireplace. A properly functioning flue is the means by which smoke and waste gasses produced by your fireplace are expelled out of your home. Occasionally, it falls privy to gaps, cracks, spalling as well as many other types of wear and tear. This leads to the potential for dangerous gasses to leak into your home. Naturally, it’s important to ensure that any damages to the flue are promptly repaired. The Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA) recommends yearly inspections in order to catch these unnoticed problems. In recent years, a viable option for many facing these kinds of repairs is HeatShield® Cerfractory Sealant. Read more…?
When approaching the time of year when you know your masonry chimney will be put to more extensive use, it is important to have it inspected and checked for safety. There are many issues that typically arise with masonry that may need attention and repair before it is put to regular use. By being a responsible homeowner and getting inspections done on your brickwork on a consistent basis, you can be assured that your masonry will be efficiently maintained. This not only decreases the likelihood of more expensive fixes in the future, it also ensures that you can enjoy your masonry to its fullest potential, knowing that all the proper precautions were taken. Read more…?
Believe it or not – the dog days of summer are coming to an end. Before long, the kids will be back in school, and you will find yourself busier than ever. The season of fall brings with it many to-do lists, so getting ahead of some things now can make your life easier. Once September arrives, the Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA)-certified chimney sweeps at Home Safe Hearth & Chimney are very busy cleaning and inspecting chimneys, and it can be difficult to schedule an appointment for your annual chimney maintenance services. Read more…?
As a home and fireplace owner, you might be looking for ways to prevent damage to your investment. Getting educated about various threats to your fireplace and chimney is a good place to start.
If you’ve read any amount of literature on your fireplace and chimney, the word creosote might have come up in your reading from time to time, and it’s easy to see why: creosote is among the foremost harmful by-products of utilizing your fireplace. Letting too much creosote build up in your chimney could be disastrous, costly, and even deadly. Read more…?
Nonsense in your home is a good thing especially when it is combined with lots of smiles and laughter. Non-scents is also a good thing, especially after you have corrected the cause of a formerly stinky chimney and fireplace. Home Safe Hearth & Chimney alleviates the problem of foul-smelling chimneys and fireplaces for homeowners in Wichita and the surrounding communities. Read more…?
You want the best doctor for you and the best car for your family, why wouldn’t you want the best home maintenance professionals for your house? Being a homeowner involves a lot of responsibility, and any experienced homeowner will tell you that prevention and maintenance is the biggest step towards keeping your home beautiful and safe. Having your chimney professionally swept is necessary to maintain the integrity of your wood-burning appliance. Beyond this, hiring a CSIA certified chimney sweep will guarantee your chimney is swept efficiently, safely and thoroughly. Read more…?
Spring is here and everyone is so relieved to shed the nasty winter weather in favor of sunshine and mild temperatures. Now is the time to tackle those spring cleaning checklists and enjoy some time outdoors with friends and family. But have you stopped to think about your poor chimney? Your chimney has been exposed to the harsh elements all winter long! The lasting effects of the long winter we have just endured make a chimney inspection long overdue. There are many factors that affect a chimney structure, let’s take a look at a few of them. Read more…?