Local fireplace restoration in Lake Shore

An unused fireplace in Lake Shore restored to working order, with the drying time before the first fire written down.

Fully licensed and insured
Locally owned
Family owned and operated
Same-day service

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Get a quote for chimney and fireplace repair and installation in Jacksonville.

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(904) 920-5495 Free Inspection

Local restoration pros who keep the original look

Locally owned in Jacksonville
Family owned and operated
100% satisfaction guaranteed
Free inspection and estimate
Same-day service available
10% off any service

Nothing on the estimate changes the look; every line restores what is already there.

Family owned and operatedA family business plans your Lake Shore fireplace as one job, so each step happens once and in the right order.
100% satisfaction guaranteedYou approve the trial patch and the mortar sample before the face is touched, and our guarantee covers the result.

Call (904) 920-5495 Free Inspection

Restoring rather than rebuilding

Old fireplaces are sometimes quoted for a full rebuild when most of the masonry is sound. Restoration keeps the sound parts, repairs the failed ones and leaves the original brick in place, which is often what gives the room its character in the first place.

We write down which parts are sound and which are not, so you can see how much of the fireplace is being kept, and any section that has to be rebuilt is matched to the rest. Quoted a rebuild for the fireplace in Lake Shore? Get a second look free at (904) 920-5495.

Lake Shore is one of the named neighborhoods of Jacksonville. Lake Shore falls within Duval County.

What fireplace restoration covers in Lake Shore

Seized dampers freed or replaced
Mantel and trim distances checked against the code
Rooms protected while the work is done
A written order of work for your Lake Shore fireplace

Call (904) 920-5495 Free Inspection

How fireplace restoration runs

Clean and assess
Everything from the hearth to the flue top is cleaned, then checked and written up part by part.
Heat side first
Firebox, parging and damper repairs are made in refractory materials and left to dry.
Trial, then the face
A trial patch is cleaned and a mortar sample made for your approval before the face work.
Repoint, cure, clean
Face joints are repointed in layers, left to harden, then the face gets its final cleaning.

Rusted dampers inland in Lake Shore

A damper does not need salt to rust. Inland in Lake Shore, moisture down the flue is enough to seize a plate that has not moved in years.

We free it or replace it and test it through its full travel.

10% off any service booked within 72 hours of inspection

Firebox, hearth and damper work on an old fireplace all come 10% off.

Call (904) 920-5495 Free Inspection

Old bricks with rounded edges

Old brick that has worn round at the edges makes a joint look wider if the mortar is brought flush to the face. The National Park Service guidance suggests recessing the final mortar slightly behind the face in that case.

The recess keeps the joint looking the width it was built, and it avoids a thin featheredge of mortar that breaks off easily and lets water in. We look at how the surviving joints sit against worn brick and set the new ones the same way, so the repair reads as part of the old work rather than a patch laid over it.

Wetting the brick before any cleaner

Saturating the brick comes first in the association's bucket-and-brush method: the area to be cleaned, and the brick below it, is soaked with water before a cleaning solution goes on and kept wet until the final rinse. The cleaner is not allowed to dry on the brick.

Saturated brick absorbs less of the cleaner, so it works on the surface instead of soaking into the masonry, and the rinse carries it away. On a fireplace face that means working in small sections, with the hearth and floor protected and the rinse water caught as we go, not flooding the whole face at once.

Deep stains and a poultice

Some stains sit deep in one spot, such as an oil mark or a dark ring where something rested against the brick. The Brick Industry Association describes a poultice for these: a paste of a solvent or reagent in an inert powder that draws the stain out as it dries.

A poultice is for localized stains, not for cleaning a whole face, and it can take more than one application. We use it only where the general cleaning has left a mark behind, and the estimate lists it separately so you can decide whether the spot is worth the extra work and the extra visit.

Cleaned and checked in Lake Shore before a plan is priced

Flue, smoke chamber and firebox cleaned before the condition list
Firebox joints and firebrick in C199 refractory mortar
Face mortar matched in sand, color and profile, softer than the brick
Lintel checked for rust, sag and bearing

Before an old fireplace is brought back

Why not use acid on the brick?

Brick industry guidance advises against unbuffered muriatic acid, which can etch mortar, discolor brick and cause new stains on light-colored brick. We use the gentlest method that works in a trial.

Is the restoration inspection free?

Yes. The inspection and the written estimate cost nothing, with upfront pricing and no hidden fees. Booked within 72 hours of that inspection, the restoration is 10% off.