Leaking at chimney

So I have a leak at my chimney that we just can't quite figure out. I posted pictures below. I hired a roofing company that came out and redid all of the flashing around the chimney. They also replaced a bunch of shingles, caulked, put in a copper cricket, and put on a new chimney cap. It still leaked after all of that. I had them come out 2 more times and they used a different caulk, replaced more shingles and used a sealer on the chimney itself. Still leaking. Now they have decided to wrap the chimney with what looks like saran wrap which appears to have changed things. The first 3 pics below show the water coming in before they wrapped it. The next 3 pics show after they wrapped it. It almost looks like the brick is sweating now and not so much leaking. The last pic shows there work. Any advice on how to fix this would be greatly appreciated!!!

Was the counter flashing cut into the brick and a reglet formed on the flashing that's tucked into the cut? A reglet is a 90* bend with another bend backwards that's taped into the cut. The edge is then sealed. Only 3 places the chimney can leak, the crown, side wall or flashing. I'd suggest tarping the chimney, covering the top and sides, this will tell if the flashing is the issue. If it doesn't leak there, water test it with a hose. Work from the bottom up til you find the source.

Sure looks like they just set the flashing against the chimney, instead of cutting into the mortar line and inserting the bend at the top of the flashing into the cut.
Never going to work with it just sitting flat like that I'm also not seeing a real cricket, looks like they just made the flashing wider.
https://www.thisoldhouse.com/ideas/leakproof-flashing

oldognewtrick said:

Was the counter flashing cut into the brick and a reglet formed on the flashing that's tucked into the cut? A reglet is a 90* bend with another bend backwards that's taped into the cut. The edge is then sealed. Only 3 places the chimney can leak, the crown, side wall or flashing. I'd suggest tarping the chimney, covering the top and sides, this will tell if the flashing is the issue. If it doesn't leak there, water test it with a hose. Work from the bottom up til you find the source.

Click to expand...

I do know that they cut into the brick. I don't know about the reglet. They did do some testing with a hose. It only started to leak when they started to move up the chimney with the hose. Since they wrapped it the chimney the water doesn't seem to stream in down the sides anymore either. It looks more like it sweats in. Which made me think it was coming in through the brick?

Most likely the mortar. If the mortar was mixed with to much sand and the joints not struck with a pointing trowel, they can absorb water. A lot of times thin spots in the mortar will cause leaks. Check to make sure there are no voids anywhere. Even though you have a chimney cap, check for any place that water can infiltrate at the crown. There should be no weep holes above the flashing, unless you have through wall flashing which buy your description, you don't have. Often times, multiple applications of a masonary waterproofing sealer is required to stop water intrusion. Sealers will not bridge crackes or voids.

Fixing the mortar in between the bricks is called repointing. That addresses the cracks and voids that oldognewtrick already mentioned. Short of rebuilding the chimney the only way to deal with how porous the brick itself is would be the masonry sealer that oldognewtrick already mentioned. But if the mortar flaws have not been addressed by repointing first then you are expecting performance from the sealer that it cannot deliver. Repointing is the process of cutting out deteriorated mortar and replacing it with new mortar.

If the chimney has a clay tile flue liner it can be a source of water intrusion. Clay tile is porous and can absorb water. Instead of applying sealer to it you may want to consider having a copper or stainless steel spark arrester installed. The construction of a chimney spark arrester is a metal cap with the arrester screening at the sides. If the arrester is properly selected it will shield the clay from any direct rain impingement.

--
Tom Horne

I've fabricated and installed hundreds of chimney cap like this one out of 24 GA metal or copper over the years. The step over at the top provides protection against driven rain as opposed to the open design shown in the above pictures.

First thing to do is identify the source of the leak, this will mostly involve a water hose and patience. Work from the bottom to the top, don't stop just because a leak developed. Anything from the shingles to the very top can be problems. Any or all...

I went back once again and looked at your picture on the outside.
Still makes no since to me the way it was done.
Why cut into the brick when the mortar line was just above it?
If there was a location in your profile and if your lucky someone here there local and knows what to look for might stop by to look at it.
I've done it many times at no cost.

This is not my area of expertise, if I even have one.
But, the 4th photo, to me, shows the chimney sitting in a valley.
One roof slope comes down from the L into the end of the chimney.
The other comes down from the R into the side of the chimney.
The flashing is in the valley above the chimney and along the end and side where the slopes meet the chimney.
The flashing looks to be laying on top of the shingles, not under any of them.
The "molding" around the chimney above the flashing has gaps between it and the chimney.
How can that flashing stop water from reaching the joint between the roof and the chimney?
The same question for the molding.
Expensive copper flashing does not scare water away.

Voyager, I think it's just an illusion that the copper flashing is on top of the shingles. If it were, the house would flood like a fire hose was turned loose in the attic. The gaps you are seeing looks to me like they used a clear caulk of some sort to seal the counter flashing.

Hope the OP comes back and gives us an update on his situation.

I also wondered if it might not be an illusion.
I had to look long and hard to be sure the roof slopes were as I thought I was seeing them.
The dark shingles were hard to see any detail, but it looked as if the edges of the shingles ran under the flashing.
I downloaded photo #4 and ran it through PS to lighten the dark areas.

It is now easier to see the edge lines of the shingles.
The shingle lines are covered by the flashing.
It has to be over the shingles not under them as it would need top be to be effective.

I have just been using a DAP Silicone Max clear caulk on my roof rebuild.
It sets to a translucent white.
It is not clear.
That molding may be caulked.
But, I'm not convinced it has been.

I am open to correction.

chimney in a valley? 1st issue is that. depending upon pitch and where on rise of roof it is and if its attic or rooms below, maybe think about moving the chimney. if there is enough dim it can be corbled over. the pic looks like the rise flashing isn't let into and sealed into the chimney. a lot of good points to think about above. maybe i missed it, what part of the country are you located?

joecaption said:

I went back once again and looked at your picture on the outside.
Still makes no since to me the way it was done.
Why cut into the brick when the mortar line was just above it?
If there was a location in your profile and if your lucky someone here there local and knows what to look for might stop by to look at it.
I've done it many times at no cost.

Click to expand...

I'm in Berks County PA. I'm not much of a handy man. I was just looking to see if anyone else maybe sees something their missing?

sthole said:

chimney in a valley? 1st issue is that. depending upon pitch and where on rise of roof it is and if its attic or rooms below, maybe think about moving the chimney. if there is enough dim it can be corbled over. the pic looks like the rise flashing isn't let into and sealed into the chimney. a lot of good points to think about above. maybe i missed it, what part of the country are you located?

Click to expand...

I'm in Berks County PA.

Sorry I've been a little busy and didn't post back sooner. Just an update. The company came back and removed the wrapping they had around the chimney. They applied a new sealer to the chimney and now we are just waiting for it to rain. They did have at least 3 guys look at the chimney and all three did say that it looks fine and that they see no reason to have to re-point it. So I'm kinda on a wait and see. I shelled out a lot of money to get the cap and shingles and flashing all redone. I'm hoping the sealer will do that job. Otherwise it sounds like re-pointing is the next step.

Any updates demoso?

oldognewtrick said:

Any updates demoso?

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Let me start off by the saying the company has been great to deal with! They have comeback at least 6 times now and promise me they aren't going anywhere till they stop the leak. So that definitely helps put my mind at ease. They do not believe it has anything to do with the flashing around the chimney. They are confident of their work and the cooper they put around there. So the last time it rained I did get a little water right at the top where the roof meets the chimney. It was a very small amount of water just starting at the very top of the chimney. The area of my first pic above. It didn't stream down like before just got a little wet right at the top so they definitely slowed it down a lot. They had at least 6 guys out the last time and were up there for a while replacing all kinds of shingles, repairing flashing, repairing bent nails, etc.... So I'm waiting for my next rain to see what happens. My roof is old and complex. I know it's at least 20yrs old with 2 bump outs one of which is a rubber roof, chimney right in the middle in a valley. One thing that's interesting is that I don't see any leaking when it snows. We had about 4-5 inches of snow and I didn't see any water come in at all and the snow melted pretty fast over the next 3-4 days and I kept checking. But for now I'm on a wait and see again.

I just wanted to update my situation. I still have leaks. Not only around the chimney but in two other parts of the roof. I do know the roof is over 20yrs old and there is evidence of other patch work from the past. The roofing company keeps trying to patch different spots installing new shingles, but they're having a tough time pinpointing the leaks. I was hoping to stretch a few years out of the roof but I don't think that's gonna be possible. So I've decided to get a new roof. Thanks for everyones info and help!