Showerthought: a chimney cap in Spokane taught me to check the whole stack

I put a new stainless steel cap on a chimney in a house near the river last month. The homeowner called back two weeks later saying they had a new damp smell in the living room. I figured it was just the season change, but went out to check. Turns out, the new cap was fine, but the liner about four feet down from the top had a small crack I missed. The cap changed the draft just enough to pull air down that crack instead of up and out. I learned that even a simple add-on can shift how the whole system works. Now I do a full camera scan from top to bottom before any cap install. Has anyone else had a small fix uncover a bigger problem hiding further down?

2 comments

2 Comments

noah_rivera5713d ago

Yeah, that reminds me of when I replaced a sink trap and found the main drain line behind the wall was almost completely rusted through. The new piece just put pressure on the old weak spot.

charles_wilson13d ago

Ugh, that's the worst. Had the same thing happen with an old cast iron pipe under my kitchen sink. Put in a shiny new PVC trap and the whole joint just crumbled like wet cardboard. Water everywhere.