Chimney Gap

[george2c]

Hi All,

Our chimney has pulled away a little from the cabin. Here are some pictures of it. What is the best thing to fill the gap with. I was thinking maybe some Mortar colored caulking? Its a good inch gap on the right side. Thanks!!

 

[bholler]

Hi All,

Our chimney has pulled away a little from the cabin. Here are some pictures of it. What is the best thing to fill the gap with. I was thinking maybe some Mortar colored caulking? Its a good inch gap on the right side. Thanks!!

View attachment 225927 View attachment 225928

Before doing anything is it still moving? It should be filled with mortar and the two structures should be built on the same footer so they should not move independently. So i would fill it with mortar and if it cracks again you have problems.

 

[george2c]

no it was added after we built the camp. Should we get some type of morter in the bag and squeeze it in there?? not sure

 

[blades]

I think you are going to have to go much further than just filling the gap( not the best thing to do) you need to discover what is particularly moving. In other word the footing for the flue or the cabin. What is under the cabin? is it an on grade slab or a slab with a footing below the frost line, same questions apply for flue. Was the flue properly tied into the cabin wall or just built next to it. You stated that the foundations are separate. What is the ground material of ( clay sand rock ect). Freeze and thaw cycles are what you likely dealing with. Got to get a line on the basics before attempting any type of remediation. Adding material to the separated surfaces could cause additional problems.

 

[george2c]

I appreciate the help

 

[bholler]

I think you are going to have to go much further than just filling the gap( not the best thing to do) you need to discover what is particularly moving. In other word the footing for the flue or the cabin. What is under the cabin? is it an on grade slab or a slab with a footing below the frost line, same questions apply for flue. Was the flue properly tied into the cabin wall or just built next to it. You stated that the foundations are separate. What is the ground material of ( clay sand rock ect). Freeze and thaw cycles are what you likely dealing with. Got to get a line on the basics before attempting any type of remediation. Adding material to the separated surfaces could cause additional problems.

We see stuff like that all the time typically we fill the crack and then come back yearly to check for movement. Many times there is no movment anymore but there are times that it needs substantial work to fix.