Chimney sweep, inspection and repair in Commerce Township

Cottages that became houses

A lot of the houses on the lake streets began as small summer cottages from the 1930s through the 1960s. Over the years owners winterized them, added rooms and second floors, and put in furnaces. On Long Lake and Bass Lake, small old cottages sit next door to houses that started out the same size and have been added onto several times.

The chimney usually came with the first cottage. It may have been built for a fireplace or a stove that was only used on summer weekends, and it may have been short, since the cottage roof was low. When a second story went on, the chimney could end up too short for the new roof. When an addition went on beside it, the chimney could end up tied into a roof line it was never built for.

What we look for on those chimneys

On a cottage chimney, we check whether it still clears the roof around it, whether the flashing was redone when the roof changed, and what's venting into it now. A furnace or water heater added years after the cottage was built may be running into an old flue that was sized for a fireplace. If that's what we find, a liner sized to the appliance is the usual fix. Our guide to a water heater in an old chimney explains why.

Life on the lakes

Union Lake, the biggest, runs across the line into West Bloomfield. Lower Straits, Middle Straits, Commerce Lake and Long Lake all have houses right to the shore. A chimney on a lakefront house takes the wind straight off the open water, and the side facing the lake usually shows wear first, at the crown and in the mortar near the top.

Newer houses and stone chimneys

The subdivisions built from the 1990s on have larger colonials and ranches on lots away from the water. Many have a factory-built fireplace inside a framed chase, and some chases are faced with fieldstone so they look like a solid stone chimney. Under the stone there's a metal flue, and on top there's a metal chase cover and a cap. When those covers rust or the seal fails, water gets inside the chase behind the stone.

Chase covers and caps

On a stone-faced chase with a rusted or leaking top, we replace the cover with one made to fit the chase, in stainless steel, with the cap and the seal done at the same time. We show you photos and quote it in writing first.

Getting to you

We work across Commerce Township on Union Lake Road, Commerce Road, Haggerty, Bogie Lake Road and Richardson, and pair Commerce visits with jobs in Walled Lake, Wixom and West Bloomfield. Book online and pick a 3-hour arrival window, or call for same-day availability when the schedule allows.