DALE SHILLING MASONRY

Initial work was done in September 2012 and was completed by a three man crew in an amazing day and a half. The crew used critically important, compressible thermal expansion joints around both tile flues and sealed them with high grade thermal caulk. At completion, homeowner inspected work and was shown one new top course corner brick that had to be caulked because it had been 'pulled' during the removal of the crown form. Was assured that it was both structurally and hydraulically sound. Balance of the project looked great including the mortar and crown color match. The home was well protected throughout the process and site was left neat and clean when they departed. However, a June 2013 inspection of the chimney revealed cracking along the horizontal mortar joints of the top two new courses of brick. Dale was contacted and our shared diagnosis was that the crown form was probably cinched up too tight before the mortar for the new courses had completely set. He returned in July, at his expense, to undercut and re-pointed the mortar joints for those courses. Bottom line: Dale and his crew were organized, efficient, and quality oriented. His premium price was justified by their performance and his willingness to accommodate the homeowner's request for a custom crown. It is our belief that the call-back issue arose simply from trying to cast the crown the same day as laying the new courses of brick.

The work looks really well done. It took him and another guy about 5 hours to complete. They were able to match the color of the old mortar.

The first provider did not do a good job. The chimney was cracked in several places. Dale Shilling Masonry resealed the cracks and fixed it. It's been so far so good. He said I should get it checked every five years or so and make sure that everything's fine. The price was good. If he was going to do the chimney like the other provider had done, it would've been double the charge.