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Being A Landlord
1. Find the right tenants. New landlords must select solvent, solidly employed renters capable of sending their checks in on time and must not exclude anyone protected by federal Fair Housing laws -- racial minorities, the disabled, single mothers...
Home Security The Doors to your home.
In part 3 of this occasional series on home security we are going to look at the main points of entry to your home the doors.
It makes no sense to have flimsy weak doors on your house, what you really need is something that a House Breaker will...
Style Your Home With Decorative Plantation Shutters
Choosing plantation shutters for form or function? Plantation shutters offer both to today’s homeowner. These unique window treatments trace their roots to ancient Greece. The Greeks used them for both privacy and security. Interior shutters...
Thinking about Home Improvement? Then here's a checklist!
Dear friends, if you are planning to improve/renovate or
refurnish your home then this article can be a very
useful guide and save your lot of time.
When it comes to home improvement, most people think that
it's has to do with painting the...
Your Guide to Wireless Security Cameras
The use of wireless security cameras has been gaining in popularity over recent years. This can be for many reasons. Some people use wireless security cameras to make their home secure and to monitor their home. Other people use them to...
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Checking Your Chimney Caps
While you are cleaning leaves out of your home’s gutters, dealing with Christmas lights, or adjusting a satellite dish, don’t forget to check on your chimney caps while you’re on the roof. Chimney caps are those mesh-sided enclosures (usually made of stainless steel, copper, or galvanized steel) atop your chimney to prevent water, animals, bird droppings, and leaves from entering your home. A once-a-year assessment of your chimney caps’ condition can be well worth your time for protecting your house. Here are four things you can easily check on your chimney caps:
1. Are the chimney caps there?
If there have been high winds in your area, your chimney caps may have blown off. Properly secured chimney caps withstand most high winds, but exceptional winds can do damage, including blowing chimney caps off.
2. Are the chimney caps securely attached?
Time, wild animals, or high winds can degrade the security of your chimney caps’ attachment to your flues or chimneys. You can retighten screws or reapply a sealant if your chimney caps are no longer securely attached.
3. Are the chimney caps rusting through?
Galvanized steel chimney caps generally last about three to five years before they become too rusted to serve their purposes. In salt water environments, galvanized chimney caps corrode even more quickly. Stainless
steel and copper chimney caps usually have lifetime warranties, so they are good replacement choices for those who don’t want to be replacing their chimney caps every few years.
4. Are the sides of your chimney caps clogged?
The mesh or screen sides of your chimney caps may get clogged with leaves or other detritus forced into the mesh by very high winds. More frequently, chimney caps’ mesh can get clogged with soot and creosote, especially if you are using unseasoned, green firewood. This clogging is most common in chimney caps designed with smaller mesh holes for use in wildfire prone areas. If the mesh sides of your chimney caps are clogged, your fireplace’s or woodstove’s draft will be reduced, leading to poor performance or even to a chimney fire.
When you head up to the roof, take along a metal tape measure, paper, and pencil. In case you find you need new chimney caps, you will have the tools at hand to measure your flues or chimney crown for their replacement chimney caps.
About the author:
Susan Penney appreciates simple ways to make our homes renewing spaces for our families. She invites you to visit http://www.fireplacemall.com for fireplace accessories to serve your fire-less or your fire-filled fireplace.
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