Timber Lakes · Wasatch County
Getting a Timber Lakes Cabin Chimney Properly Inspected
Most inspection calls we take in Timber Lakes come from one of three places: a cabin changing hands, an insurer asking for paperwork, or a stove somebody's father-in-law installed in 1994.
An inspection is not a look up the chimney with a torch. It is a written record of what the system is, what condition it is in, and whether it is safe to operate. Up here that record matters more than it does in a subdivision on the valley floor, because so much of what is installed was never permitted and nobody kept the paperwork.
The owner-built stove problem
A great many mountain cabins were put up as seasonal buildings and later turned into places people actually live through winter. The heating came with that conversion, and a lot of it went in without an inspector ever seeing it. The recurring findings are always the same: single-wall pipe run too close to a timber wall, a wall pass-through with no proper thimble, clearances measured by eye, and a chimney terminated wherever the roof was easiest to cut. None of that is unusual and none of it is safe.
Buying or selling up here
If a cabin is changing hands, ask for a Level 2. That means the camera goes up the full length of the flue and the accessible parts of the structure get looked at, not just the firebox. Cabins are sold in summer far more often than they are sold in winter, which means the buyer is looking at a hearth that has not been fired for months and cannot tell anything from it. The camera can.
What insurers are asking for
Homes surrounded by timber get questions that homes on a grid street do not. Carriers increasingly want to know that a solid-fuel appliance was inspected, that the flue is lined and intact, and that the chimney terminates with a spark-arresting screen. We give you a written report with photographs attached so you have something to send rather than a verbal assurance.
When a rough season calls for a second look
Two events should trigger an inspection regardless of when the last one happened. One is any chimney fire, even a small one that put itself out, because the heat can crack tile liners and open seams you cannot see from either end. The other is a winter with heavy snow load and ice sliding off a steep metal roof, which is hard on flashing, chase covers and anything projecting above the ridge. Both are cheap to check and expensive to ignore.
Questions
Inspection in Timber Lakes — common questions
We are buying a cabin in Timber Lakes. Which level of inspection do we need?
A Level 2, which includes camera work through the whole flue. On a sale you have no history for the appliance and often no permit record, so the visual check on its own tells you very little.
The stove was already here when we bought the place. Is that a problem?
Not automatically, but it does need verifying. Inherited installs in this area often have clearance and pipe issues that were never caught, and those are exactly what an inspection is for.
Do you provide something in writing for our insurance company?
Yes. You get a written report with photographs of the liner, the connector, the clearances and the chimney top. That is generally what a carrier wants to see for a wood-burning appliance in a forested area.
We had a small chimney fire last year and it went out on its own. Do we need anything?
Yes, and soon. A brief chimney fire can still crack clay tiles and open joints, which lets heat reach framing on the next fire. It cannot be assessed from the firebox, so the camera has to go up.
Also in Timber Lakes
Our other services here
Chimney Sweep Chimney Repair Fireplace Repair Installation Gas Fireplace Caps & Dampers Dryer Vents All Timber Lakes services
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