What to do about chimney (paint/spalling)

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DIYer101

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Hi,

I'm looking to repair and prevent some minor brick damage on my chimney. The problem is I don't know what type of contractor to call (a painter, a mason?) and what to ask them to do - without making things worse. Some of the contractors I've run across don't seem to know as much as you all:).

The chimney is in mostly good shape. I recently cleaned the gutter out (for the first time in the home's history, apparently) so there should be less spillover. Now I'm wondering what to do about the existing damage. I want to prevent any further freeze/thaw damage this winter. A fireplace guy fixed a few cracks in the chimney cap earlier this year and made it the way it's supposed to be (sloping out, with a little lip I think).

I was about to just throw some elastomeric paint on it, but I've been reading that maybe you don't want to paint brick because it holds the moisture (which might be part of the problem here). I'm in dry - but cold in the winter - southwest Colorado FYI. So now I'm thinking of getting the paint stripped just in case they used the wrong kind and either leaving it exposed brick or putting the right kind of paint on.

Thanks for any ideas.

Edited to add: the chimney is just a fireplace, although there are 2 flues coming out and there might've been a furnace exhausting through there years ago. I'm getting a pellet stove (found a used deal I couldn't pass up) put in next week.

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Smooky

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Reach4

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I was not aware of elastomeric paint, but when I searched on that, they said it breaths... does not trap the water vapor.
 

Dana

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Be sure to install the proper stainless flue liner for the pellet stove, to eliminate exhaust condensation in what is likely to be a very oversized terra-cotta flue liner, which is both a fire hazard and a mortar-degradation issue.
 

DIYer101

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Thanks all. So it sounds like stripping the paint isn't necessary (just paint over it with a breathable paint and hopefully that'll keep the moisture from doing what it's been doing)?

Is that because the old paint is so old it's probably dinged up and now it definitely breathes no matter what it was made of?

Dana, the fireplace installer is going to use metal ducting of some sort all the way out the chimney, but thank you - always wise to be safe.
 

WoodenTent

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The paint on the brick could have caused this by trapping moisture. My guess though is those stepped back bricks caused water to puddle which caused this. As others mentioned, cracked flues/bad liners can also cause this sort of thing. For that you need a real mason (not a random guy in a truck putting signs out for tuckpointing). You might want to consider doing something to get rid of the step features in the brick, since it's all ready been painted, you can paint it all when done and it will match.

As someone who just had to spend a ton of money having top of chimney rebuilt because the original crown was built wrong causing massive deteriorating, fix the causes first, then touch up the cosmetics (paint).
 
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