Lathrup Village, Oakland County
Chimney sweep and cleaning in Lathrup Village
Lathrup Village fireplaces are masonry, built into brick and stone houses, and some of them still burn wood every winter. Under the old trees along the circles and triangle parks, the flue also catches what falls from above.
Fireplaces in cottage and colonial houses
The 1930s houses here, English Cottage and Colonial Revival among them, were built with brick or stone fireplaces. The ranches and split-levels from after 1945 usually kept a masonry fireplace too, often with a second flue in the same chimney for the furnace. Some owners have since put in gas logs or a wood-burning insert. Wood fires leave soot and creosote on the flue walls, and damp wood or slow fires leave more. Gas leaves very little, but the flue still gets checked.
Older masonry fireplaces often have a cast-iron damper that has rusted or seized after years without a fire. We check that yours opens and closes, and our guide to chimney damper problems covers what can be done if it doesn't. If you have an insert or a wood stove, call before you book.
Trees on the circles and triangle parks
Lathrup Village's streets bend around octagonal and circular focal points, with small triangular parks scattered through the neighborhoods. After ninety years, the trees along those streets and in the parks are tall, and many hang over roofs. In fall, leaves and seeds land on the chimney top and fall into any flue without a cap. Squirrels and raccoons use the branches to get up there.
Chimney swifts nest in chimneys from about May to August and are federally protected, so a nest stays until they leave. If you hear chirping in summer, see our guide to chimney swifts and book the sweep for fall.
Timing
Book before the first cold weekend. Once the weather turns, the schedule fills quickly. Our guide on how often to clean a chimney explains how often to come back.
What the visit includes
The cleaning is $349 for one flue, with an inspection on the same visit. We cover the floor around the fireplace, sweep the flue, inspect the chimney inside and out, and clean up before we leave. A camera through the flue is $75 extra. If we find loose brick or a cracked crown, you'll see photos, and the chimney repair page for Lathrup Village lists our starting prices.
Questions
Our chimney has no cap. Is that why there's always debris in the fireplace?
Very likely. An open flue under mature trees collects leaves and twigs, and animals can climb in from branches. We sweep it out and inspect the chimney on the same visit, and if there's no cap, we'll tell you what one costs. A single-flue cap is $375.
How often should we have a Lathrup Village fireplace cleaned?
It depends on how much you burn and what. A household that burns wood most winter weekends needs it more often than one that lights a few fires at the holidays. Our guide on how often to clean a chimney goes through it. If you don't know when it was last swept, start with a cleaning and inspection.
Chimney sweep near Lathrup Village
Chimney sweep in Lathrup Village
Pick a day and a 3-hour arrival window online. If you'd rather talk it through, call (248) 266-9991.