Chimney sweep and cleaning in Orchard Lake

Fireplaces on the lakes

Orchard Lake Village sits on Orchard Lake and reaches onto Cass Lake, the largest lake in Oakland County, and Upper Straits Lake. Most of the houses on those shores are lived in year-round now, and the fireplaces get used that way. Some burn wood all winter. Some have a wood insert fitted into the old opening, like the one in the photo, and some have gas logs. A walkout house may have a fireplace on each level, each on its own flue.

Wood leaves soot and creosote on the flue walls, and an insert's liner collects it too. If your house has a factory-built fireplace with a round metal flue, we sweep it with brushes sized for the pipe. Stone chimneys get the same sweep inside. Outside, we look at the joints near the top and the crown or cover, since that's where the weather off the lake gets in first.

What the trees drop in

The city has zoned to keep its lots large, and many of them are wooded. Leaves and twigs land in an uncapped flue, and squirrels, raccoons and birds move in. A cap keeps most of that out, and on a stone chimney with a metal cover, we check that the cap and cover are still tight.

From May to August, the chirping in the chimney is usually chimney swifts. They're protected by federal law, and the nest has to stay until the young have left. Our guide to chimney swifts explains what to do until then.

Price and timing

A sweep is $349 per flue and includes an inspection on the same visit. We cover the floor and hearth, sweep the flue, inspect the fireplace and chimney, and clean up before we go. A camera down the flue is $75 more. If the house has a fireplace on each level, set the quantity when you book so we plan time for all of them. Book before the first cold weekend. Our guide on how often to clean a chimney helps you tell when yours is due. If the inspection finds a cracked crown or loose stone, our chimney repair page has the Orchard Lake prices.