Ann Arbor, Washtenaw County
Chimney inspection in Ann Arbor
A lot of Ann Arbor inspections are for buyers. Houses here change hands with chimneys anywhere from 60 to 170 years old, and the listing rarely says what's inside the flue.
Ranches and tri-levels on the south side
Lansdowne, south of Scio Church Road and west of Ann Arbor-Saline Road, went up from 1963 into the 1980s. It's a mix of ranches, bi-levels, tri-levels and colonials, most with basements. Ann Arbor Woods, near Buhr Park, has brick ranches and tri-levels from the 1950s through the 1970s. In many of these houses the furnace and water heater vent up the same chimney as the fireplace, through a second flue.
That second flue is the one people forget about. Gas exhaust carries a lot of water vapor, and over decades it wears on clay tile and mortar from the inside. When an old furnace is swapped for a high-efficiency one that vents out the side of the house, the water heater can be left venting alone into a flue sized for both. Our guide to a water heater in an old chimney explains why that matters.
Level 1 or Level 2
A Level 1 inspection is $49. We check the fireplace, the flue as far as we can see it, and the outside of the chimney, then walk you through what we found. The $49 is credited toward any repair or service we do after it.
A Level 2 is $149. It adds the chimney where it passes through the attic, the basement and any crawl space, plus a camera run through the flue. Book it when you're buying or selling, when you change what vents into the chimney, or after a chimney fire or a storm. Our guide to chimney inspection levels goes through the difference. If you want the camera with a Level 1, it's $75 added. Prices are for one chimney. If the house has two, set the number when you book or call us.
Buying on the Old West Side or in Burns Park
A house built around 1900 might have a flue that was never lined, a liner someone added later, or a chimney rebuilt above the roof at some point. From the living room and the yard they look the same. Only the camera tells them apart. If the house also has a fireplace in the basement or upstairs, we check every flue in the chimney along with the one by the living room. Call early in your inspection period with the address and your deadline. If the camera finds cracked tile or gaps in the joints, you still have time to get a repair quote before you negotiate.
Questions
We're buying a house in Lansdowne. Isn't the home inspection enough for the chimney?
A general home inspector usually looks at the fireplace from the room and the chimney from the ground or the edge of the roof. That won't show the inside of the flue or how the furnace connects in the basement. A Level 2 inspection, at $149, covers the attic and basement sections and puts a camera through the flue. Call with the address and the date your inspection period ends.
Our Ann Arbor house has a fireplace nobody has used in years. Should we have it checked before we light it?
Yes. A fireplace that has sat for years can have a rusted or stuck damper, a nest or leaves in the flue, and cracks nobody has looked for. A $49 inspection tells you whether it's ready to use. If it needs sweeping first, the $349 cleaning includes an inspection on the same visit, so you can book that instead.
Chimney inspection near Ann Arbor
Chimney inspection in Ann Arbor
Pick a day and a 3-hour arrival window online. If you'd rather talk it through, call (248) 266-9991.