Boston Chimney Sweep Greater Boston

Sweeping · Inspection · Repair

Heating season starts with the flue, not the thermostat.

We inspect the whole chimney, photograph what we find, and give you one written number. If it doesn’t need work, we say so and leave.

Book a free inspection
3D model, not a photograph of a completed project. An isometric miniature of a New England colonial house with a tall red brick chimney, copper rain cap and copper step flashing.
3D model, not a photograph of a completed project
One flat fee, in writingAgreed before any work starts. That number is what you pay.
Free inspectionNo charge to come and look, and no obligation afterwards.
Photos of everything we findA written report you keep, whoever you end up hiring.

How it works

Three steps, no surprises.

  1. 01

    You send the form

    Tell us what the chimney is doing and add a photo if you have one. It takes about a minute and we answer the same day.

  2. 02

    We come and look

    Roof and firebox, camera up the flue, about an hour. You get the photos and one flat fee in writing before anything is touched.

  3. 03

    We fix it on the spot

    Most of what we find gets put right the same visit, at the fee you already agreed. If it needs a return trip we say so then, not after.

3D model, not a photograph. An isometric cutaway of a masonry chimney showing the copper cap, limestone crown, flue liner, smoke chamber, damper and brick firebox.
3D model, not a photograph of a completed project

What we’re actually looking at

Five parts fail. Four of them you can’t see.

Almost every chimney problem in Greater Boston starts at one of these. Which one it is decides whether you’re spending a morning or a week.

  1. 01Cap & crown. The first thing to go, and the cheapest to put right. Water gets in here.
  2. 02Flue liner. Cracked clay tile is the most common reason an older Boston chimney fails an inspection.
  3. 03Smoke chamber. Where creosote collects fastest, and where a flue fire usually starts.
  4. 04Damper. Seized open it heats the street all winter. Seized shut, the smoke comes back to you.
  5. 05Flashing. The ceiling stain beside the chimney is nearly always this, not the roof.

What we do

Six things, done properly.

Every visit ends the same way: photographs of what we found, and a number you can hold us to.

01 · Sweeping

Full creosote removal, no soot in the room.

Drop cloths down before anything else, negative-pressure vacuum running the whole time, before-and-after photos of the flue every visit. You get the images whether or not you hire us for anything else.

3D model, not a photograph. An isometric roof section with a brick chimney, a sweeping rod in the open flue and a folded drop sheet on the shingles.
3D model, not a photograph of a completed project
3D model, not a photograph. An isometric roof section with an inspection camera on a copper reel lowered into the flue and a monitor case open on the shingles.
3D model, not a photograph of a completed project

02 · Camera inspection

The whole flue on camera, crown to firebox.

A written report with an image of every defect and what it actually means. Useful for your insurer, and the thing a buyer’s inspector will ask for if you sell.

03 · Liners & relining

Stainless liner, sized to the appliance.

Most of the chimneys we open in Boston were built for a coal or oil appliance that left decades ago. A liner sized for what is actually connected is the difference between a working flue and a warm wall.

3D model, not a photograph. An isometric cutaway chimney with cracked clay tile below and a new stainless liner sleeve fed down from the crown.
3D model, not a photograph of a completed project
3D model, not a photograph. An isometric view of the top of a brick chimney with a cast limestone crown, a polished copper rain cap on legs and a mesh animal screen.
3D model, not a photograph

04 · Caps & crowns

The cheapest repair on this list.

Stainless cap, cast crown, animal screen. It is also the one that prevents the expensive ones.

3D model, not a photograph. An isometric roof section with a brick chimney part-way through repointing, fresh pale mortar above and eroded joints below, with replacement bricks and a trowel on the shingles.
3D model, not a photograph

05 · Masonry & rebuilds

Matched brick, matched mortar.

Repointing and above-roofline rebuilds. Modern mortar on old brick cracks the brick, so we don’t do that.

06 · Waterproofing & flashing

The fix for the ceiling stain.

Copper step flashing cut into the brick, a counter-flashing course let into the joints, and a vapour-permeable sealant that still lets the stack dry out. Nine times out of ten the damp patch beside your chimney is this, not the roof.

How the number works

One inspection. One written number.
That number is what you pay.

Fixed

The fee is agreed first

Scope and price in writing before anything is touched. You decide with the number in front of you, not after the work has started.

Honest

It can go down, not up

If we open it up and the job is smaller than it looked, you pay the smaller number. Extra work is never added without you agreeing to it first.

Yours

The report is yours either way

Photographs of every defect we found, and what each one means, whether or not you hire us to put it right.

We don’t publish prices. Every chimney in Boston is a different age, a different liner and a different roof. A number quoted before anyone has seen it is a number that changes later.

Service area

Inside 128, same week.

If you’re outside this list, send the form anyway. We’ll tell you straight away whether we cover you rather than booking and cancelling.

BostonCambridgeSomerville BrooklineNewtonQuincy MedfordMaldenRevere EverettWatertownArlington

Book it

Tell us what the chimney is doing.

A photo of the stack from the ground and one of the firebox saves a visit’s worth of guessing. We answer the same day.

What is the chimney doing?

A sentence is enough. If you are not sure, say what you noticed and when.

Add a photo of the chimney

Optional, and the single most useful thing you can send. One shot of the stack from the ground and one of the firebox saves a whole visit of guessing, and it often means we arrive with the right parts already on the van.

Where is the property?

Street and town, or just the town if you would rather.

How do we reach you?

We answer the same day.

Goes straight to the person who does the inspection, and we do not share your details. See our privacy policy.

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