Chimney Corbeling and What You Need to Know

Before we get started, you need to know what a chimney corbel is. Understanding its function is crucial for maintaining your chimney’s integrity and preventing potential damage. A well-maintained corbel can significantly extend the life of your chimney by directing water away from vulnerable areas. Proper knowledge of this component will help you make informed decisions about necessary repairs or maintenance.

What Is a Chimney Corbel?

A chimney corbel is a slanted area that sources water away from the chimney. It is a brick bump-out with a stair effect, often called hips and shoulders. The chimney corbel is an important part of the chimney structure and sometimes needs maintenance like tuckpointing to ensure it remains structurally sound and effectively directs water away from the chimney. The corbeling hips allow water to travel away from the home, avoiding a damaging effect. It is designed to angle away from the chimney.

It can also be a flat surface angled down away from the chimney. A corbel is found in alignment with the smoke chamber of the chimney. This allows better airflow within the chimney. Chimneys were created this way to save unnecessary space and save money on materials. Instead of continuing up the entire length of the chimney with a width as large as the firebox itself. The idea was not to create such a large smoke chamber. The smoke chamber needs a 45-degree angle to allow proper flow up your chimney.

What Is a Smoke Chamber?

You may not have thought much about a smoke chamber. What is it anyway? It happens to be a very important part of the chimney itself. The smoke chamber supports the flue tiles which are clay, which makes up the chimney’s liner. The design of the smoke chamber causes issues with chimney sweeps. Special tools must be used to allow passage through the chamber. The design of the smoke chamber also causes issues with smoke escaping up the chimney. The smoke may tend to circulate in this area and get stuck without escaping up the chimney. Good airflow plays an important role in this process.

Best Corbel Design

Due to the corbel’s main job, keeping water away from the chimney and home, it needs to be sloped. You will find that a well-designed corbel is smooth and sits on a slope. If your home has a brick or cement corbel with holes in it, water may be retained. If water sits in cement, there is a very good chance that you will have cracking in time. Water freezes and expands, causing bricks and cement to crack. If your corbel is designed this way, we would suggest that you cap the corbel. This will keep the water from collecting there. You may have a stair-step type design. This too can have issues with water pooling in the area. Smoothing out the surface with a mortar fill is beneficial so the area will not pool.

Call the Chimney Service Experts

The best way to see if your corbel has the best design is to contact us for your annual inspection. We will inspect your chimney and let you know your options. Our experts will provide tailored recommendations to ensure your chimney is both safe and efficient. Regular inspections can prevent costly repairs down the line, keeping your fireplace and chimney in good operating condition.

Call Felgemacher in Rochester at 585-308-4914 or Buffalo at 716-907-4914 to schedule an appointment today.

We’ve been helping folks throughout the Buffalo and Rochester NY areas get the most out of their fireplace inserts, stoves, and chimneys for over 60 years. When specialized chimney service is required, count on us for the best in chimney sweep, chimney repair, chimney rebuilding, and chimney inspection.