Had a real scare with a leaning chimney stack last Tuesday

I was repointing an old brick chimney in a 1920s house in Springfield. About halfway up, I noticed the whole stack had a slight lean that wasn't obvious from the ground. When I tapped the mortar, a whole section on the back side just crumbled away. I stopped everything, got down, and used a laser level to confirm it was leaning almost 2 inches off plumb. We had to set up a temporary brace with some 2x4s before we could safely take it down and rebuild it properly. Has anyone else run into a hidden lean like that on an old chimney?

2 comments

2 Comments

beth_sanchez3d ago

Glad you caught it. Old chimneys are sneaky like that. I had one last year that looked fine until we stripped the ivy off. Found a crack running all the way down the back, totally hidden. It's why I poke everything with a screwdriver now before I even get the ladder out. You just never know what's behind a few layers of old paint or some vines. Good call on the laser level and the temporary brace.

jessefoster2d ago

That sounds super sketchy, glad you spotted it in time. Those old hidden leans can turn a simple job into a disaster real quick. Smart move with the laser and the brace, man.