We proudly serve the METROWEST AREA!!
We have been added to Angie's list! Thank you!!
Acton ~ Ashland ~ Bellingham ~ Berlin ~ Bolton ~ Boxborough ~ Brookline ~ Concord ~ Dover ~ Framingham ~ Franklin ~ Grafton ~ Harvard ~ Holliston ~ Hopedale ~ Hopkinton ~ Hudson ~ Lexington ~ Lincoln ~ Littleton ~ Marlboro ~ Maynard ~ Medfield ~ Medway ~ Mendon ~ Milford ~ Millis ~ Natick ~ Needham ~ Newton ~ Northborough ~ Northbridge ~ Rochdale ~Sherborn ~ Shrewsbury ~ Southborough ~ Stow ~ Sudbury ~ Sutton ~ Upton ~ Uxbridge ~ Wayland ~ Wellesley ~ Westborough ~ Weston ~ Westwood ~ Whitinsville
We visit these towns on a regular basis.
If your town is not shown please ask our office. Thank you!
We service the following complexes: Ledgemere County - Ashland, Mainstone Condo - Wayland, Pine Knoll Condo - Framingham, Pine Lake Condo - Ashland, Spyglass Hill - Ashland, Starlight Village - Ashland, The Preserve - Hopkinton, Thousand Pines - Ashland, Village of the America's - Ashland
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Your family enjoying the warmth!
Book your inspections and cleanings now!
Have your furnace and wood-pellet stove flues cleaned!
Clean chimney flues reduce sooty odor from penetrating your home on warm humid days!
DO NOT wait, once the cold sets in your chimney may weather another winter and the damage increase thus the repair cost!
Place Ashes Away Chimney Maintenance
on your To Do List!
508-881- 4274
CALL TODAY!!
Our office is ready to answer all your questions!
~ Chimney Sweeps ~ Brick ~ Mortar Joints ~ Crown ~ Caps
Flashing ~ Woodstove Pipes ~
Chimney Liner ~ Creosote
Efflorescence [ White discoloration on Masonry ]
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>>> ATTENTION <<<
http://www.mass.gov/
Search for: Heating Safely with Solid Fuels
Alternative fuel stoves: wood - pellet - coal - gas
MASSACHUSETTS LAW REQUIRES.......
"ALL" wood - pellet - coal - gas stoves require an installation
permit and follow-up installation inspection.
If you choose a contractor / chimney company to do your install, the
INDIVIDUAL INSTALLER MUST HAVE
1) Mass. Home Improvement Contractors Licence.
2) Construction Supervisor Specialty License. specifically for "Solid Fuel Appliances"
http://db.state.ma.us/dps/licenseelist.asp
IMPORTANT TO NOTE:
If you are buying a home with a wood or pellet stove be sure to get a copy of the permit! If the seller has no permit, protect yourself have a CHIMNEY SPECIALIST inspect and validate the stove is SAFE and TO CODE!
Nothing worse than telling a new home owner that his/her stove is not to code and/or that it has a heavy creosote buildup/cracked liner/no clean-out door. BE A WISE HOME PURCHASER!!
REMEMBER YOUR CARBON MONOXIDE DETECTORS!!!
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Woodstove Owners: We are finding many that chose to install the partial / throat by-pass, old install option, have not been having their woodstoves properly swept which creates a fire hazard. If you have this type install and you do not have a cleanout door on that flue, your woodstove flue IS NOT BEING CLEANED THOROUGHLY.
The soot and creosote that built-up on the flues is being swept down on-top of your block-off plate [the plate the piping for the stove goes through before reaching the throat] and without a cleanout door creosote/soot pile up on the block-off plate and create a chimney fire hazard. The only other option to installing a cleanout is to completely remove the stove/piping to properly clean the throat area of your chimney HOWEVER if this is done Mass. law requires us to get a permit to re-install the stove.
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- September 2006 Customer called due to a draft issue with his woodstove -
- Upon inspection of the fireplace flue, there was a hole noted in the bottom section of the terracotta liner. The woodstove was installed contrary to code, it lacked the "state code required" stainless steel liner that connects to the stove and travels up through the damper and into "at least" the throat area of the flue. We scheduled an install of full stainless steel liner system. In order to install this liner, breaking into the back of the chimney would be necessary.
- Upon breaking into the chimney, looking in the void behind the back side of the fireplace. Here is what was discovered..........
This void is completely sealed by walls and the external portion of the chimney.
All the black that you see in this photo is creosote buildup [the heavier the buildup the shinier the surface], a highly flammable, toxic material !!
BLUE DOT - The remaining ONE side of a 4-sided flue tile section.
RED DOT - The homes Second Floor subfloor [bedroom area], Completely charred and one section is BURNED through exposing the floor joists [bedroom area]. (Not shown) Just below that area is a similar section of the livingroom wall, the wooden partition is completely burned through and you are able to see studs and the backside of the plasterboard that is the livingroom wall.
YELLOW DOT - Exposed wood heavily coated with soot and creosote.
Had this homeowner continued to use the woodstove during the burning season, the end results could have been tragic!
This homeowner was lucky; his chimney was condemned and had to be completely torn down and rebuilt, small price when you consider the potential loss of life and home that could have occurred!
PROTECT YOUR FAMILY, YOUR HOME, YOUR INVESTMENT!!!
There is another photo of this near disaster posted on our Photo Gallery page.
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WOODSTOVE CODE
NFPA 211 Standard for Chimneys, Fireplaces, Vents and
Solid Fuel-Burning Appliances
12.4 Chimney Connections and Usage [Abridged]
12.4.5 Connection to Masonry Fireplaces.
12.4.5.1 A natural draft solid fuel-burning appliance such as a stove or insert shall be permitted to use a masonry fireplace flue where the following conditions are met:
*** There is a connector that extends from the appliance to the flue liner. [**THE MINIMUM requirement to meet MA code, is a stainless steel liner installed from the woodstove up through the smoke chamber (damper / throat area) into the bottom flue tile section {yellow on diagram} **] You must also refer to your stoves specifications
We ONLY recommend a full liner, better burn, added protection for your family and your home!
*** If the appliance vents directly through the chimney wall above the smoke chamber, there shall be a non-combustible seal below the entry point of the connector.
*** The installation shall be such that the chimney system can be inspected and cleaned. [**In some cases a clean-out door must be installed.]
