Buying or selling a home can be a stressful process. Unexpected complications make that process even more difficult and are the last thing you want to deal with. However, if you buy or sell a home without having full knowledge of how the chimney’s condition and venting systems are, you’re setting yourself up for exactly that.
A Home With Chimney Damage is Dangerous
You would never buy or sell a home without knowing if its plumbing system is functional or needs to be repaired. The vents and chimney in a house are just as essential as its plumbing system. Most American homes are heated by appliances, like furnaces, that are connected to chimneys and vents. If a chimney is dirty or damaged, then the device it’s connected to can’t work properly and can be a hazard.
A damaged chimney is also extremely dangerous. Smoke and other hazardous gases can’t leave your home through the chimney if it’s dirty and clogged. Some of those substances are flammable and put your home in danger of a fire. If you purchase a house without having the chimney inspected by your local chimney sweep, you’re at risk of buying a home that isn’t completely functional or safe. On the other side, you could be selling a home that is not worth as much as you thought, and set yourself up for arguments and complications later on.
Chimneys are also huge structural pieces of a house. A damaged chimney is just as dangerous, and expensive to fix, as a damaged roof. In fact, structural problems in chimneys that were built when your house was built, are more complex and expensive to have repaired. Furthermore, damage to your chimney is not something you can just ignore.
A damaged chimney allows cold air, animals, and debris to come into the house. Another very dangerous unwanted effect is that the chimney can collapse if it’s not fixed in time. The longer structural problems are ignored, the more difficult they become to fix. A chimney collapsing is extremely dangerous and can also inevitably damage other parts of your home.
A Local Chimney Cleaner Can Take a Weight Off Your Shoulders
Only a professional who specializes in chimney maintenance can recognize signs of chimney damage. Chimneys are dark and have many hidden parts, which makes it hard to find structural damage if you’re not an expert. The only way to know exactly what you’re getting when you buy a home with a chimney is to call a professional.
When you have All Star Chimney Sweeps inspect the chimney in a house you want to buy or sell, you can be confident that you’re being a responsible buyer or seller.