Three years ago I had to replace half my chimney at a cost of thousands of dollars because of crumbling mortar and cracked bricks. The mason who finished the job told me I needed to have the chimney ...

Q. Our home was built in 1937 with a coal furnace located in the basement. When we purchased the home in 1960, the furnace had been converted over to gas. In about1982 we replaced the furnace with a ...

Although it may seem that the bricks on your chimney are rusting, they are not. Instead, rust on a chimney comes from the oxidation of its metal parts. Chimney caps, flashing, flue liners, and other ...

Your chimney looks fine from the yard — but inspectors know better.

Q. I own a ranch home that is about 50 years old. About 10 or 12 years ago the facing of the chimney brickwork began to spall and 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick pieces began to fall off a number of the bricks ...

Q: A while back you had a column about what to do if inside or around your fireplace shows a lot of whiteness. My brickwork shows white; there is crud inside both upstairs and downstairs fireplaces.

Q:Some years ago, painters mistakenly painted one of the brick chimneys on my house black after I asked them to paint a stovepipe black. I am told that the black paint cannot be removed. Is there any ...