Chimney sweep and cleaning in Garden City

A fireplace that sits

Most Garden City houses went up between the war and 1960, when the city grew from a village of a couple of thousand into a town of 38,000. The fireplace in those ranches and bungalows is usually a small brick firebox in the living room, sharing a chimney with the furnace or water heater flue.

Plenty of owners use theirs only a few times a winter. Some haven't lit it since they moved in. A fireplace that sits still collects things. Soot from the last owner's fires stays on the flue walls, and what falls in from the top stays there too. Before the first fire in a few years, the flue should be swept and looked at.

What falls in from Cherry Hill to Ford Road

Many Garden City chimneys still have no cap, so the flue is open to whatever comes down. Leaves and seeds pile on the smoke shelf behind the damper. Birds and squirrels go in looking for a place to nest. A flue full of leaves and twigs won't draw well and can push smoke back into the room.

Chimney swifts nest in masonry chimneys from May to August, and they're federally protected. If we find an active nest, we leave it and sweep after the birds have gone. Our page on chimney swifts explains what to listen for.

The $349 visit

The cleaning is $349 and includes an inspection on the same visit. We sweep the flue, take out what's on the smoke shelf, check the firebox, damper, crown and flue tile, and tell you what we found. A camera through the flue is $75 more. If something needs fixing, you get photos and a written price before anything is done. See how often to clean a chimney if you're not sure how often yours needs it.

Timing

Call in September or early October, before the first cold weekend. On a Garden City lot with a tight side yard, tell us where we can set the ladder when you book. If the inspection turns up a cracked crown or a missing cap, there's still time to get the repair done before winter.