Protect the Logs Around a Chimney

Protect the logs around the chimney to keep your log home beautiful. Log home repair and restoration in the Midwest involves careful consideration of different elements of the home and how they interact.

A beautiful example of a stone chimney but it contributed to logs rotting around it.
The logs butting up to the chimney were vulnerable to rot.

Log cabins and stone chimneys – they go together like peanut butter and jelly. There is nothing like the image of a fire crackling in a stone fireplace while sitting in a cozy log home or cabin. The stone chimney gives the impression that it will last forever.

While they may outlive all of us, this does not mean that these beauties are maintenance-free. There are a few things to watch out for with these stone giants:

Check for leaks all around the chimney, but especially where it protrudes through the roof.
Look for moss growing on the rocks or mortar. This can mean the masonry and/or rocks are soaking up too much moisture.
If the chimney is soaking up too much moisture, this can wick into the logs and cause decay. Look for this type of rot near the transitions between logs and stone/mortar.

What can be done?

Keep the flashing in good shape around the transition between the stone and the roofline
Clean and re-seal the chimney every 5-8 years using a concrete sealer
Keep a cap on the chimney that will force most of the water to run off

These three things will keep these stone giants alive for another generation to enjoy.

Edmunds & Company can remove moss or mildew on chimneys by blasting them using corncob as the blasting media. This is a dry process and will not force water deep into the chimney the way power washing can.

Our focus is blasting log homes and cabins to remove failing finish but we can also clean chimneys if we are already there blasting the logs. Our full “menu” of services for log home repair can include sealing chimneys as part of a restoration job.

Contact us to protect your log home or cabin. It is more than an investment – it is part of you family’s history. 715-373-5744 or email [email protected]