Fireplace Inspection in Palos Hills, IL

Why Palos Hills chimneys fail inspection

Water gets in first. A crown cracks or slopes the wrong way. Rain soaks the brick core. It freezes, expands, and pushes face brick off in flakes. Mortar joints crumble next. The 1960s-70s corbelled chimneys on ranch and split-level sidewalls take this worst, because the corbel ledges hold water instead of shedding it. Spalling is the symptom. The crown is usually the cause.

An inspection separates the two. We look at the crown, the brick, and the step and counter-flashing at the roof junction. Failed flashing is the most common leak source here after a wet Illinois spring, and it gets blamed on the chimney often.

Inside, the clay tiles matter. Cracked or shifted tiles show up on camera, not from the hearth. Orphaned flues are a recurring find: a high-efficiency furnace goes in, the water heater is left venting alone into a large masonry flue, and condensation starts eating tile.

Prefab units get different attention. Heatilator, Majestic and Superior chases from that era have galvanized covers that rust through. You can often see the staining down the siding from the driveway.

Smoke rollout in a tight, retrofitted-window house is usually combustion air, not a dirty flue. We say so when that's the answer.