Chimney sweep, inspection and repair in Plymouth

City and township

This page covers the City of Plymouth and Plymouth Township around it. The city is small, a little over two square miles, and most of it was built long before the township was. The township grew later, in subdivisions off Ann Arbor Road, Sheldon and Beck. So the chimney on a Plymouth house can be well over a hundred years old or about sixty, depending on which side of the city line you're on.

The Old Village

The Old Village, north of downtown, has houses going back to the 1800s. Most are frame houses, and only a handful were built all of brick. On a chimney that old, the first thing we want to know is what the flue is lined with. Some chimneys from that era were built before clay flue tile was in common use and have no liner at all. Others have tile that's cracked or missing sections. From the street, both look the same as a sound chimney.

A camera through the flue during an inspection shows what's in there. If the flue needs a liner before it's safe to use, we'll explain the liner options and what each one costs.

The city has a Historic District Commission. If your house is in a local historic district, check with the city before any exterior work that changes how the chimney looks from the street.

Lake Pointe and the township ranches

Lake Pointe is one of the largest subdivisions in the township, with about 800 houses built between 1957 and 1966. Houses from those years usually have one brick chimney with a flue for the fireplace and a second flue for the furnace or water heater. At sixty-some years old, the crown on top and the mortar joints just under it are where we expect to find wear. If the fireplace hasn't been used in a while, our guide on how often to clean a chimney will tell you whether it's due.

Rebuilding the top of an older chimney

On the older Plymouth chimneys, the damage is usually in the top few feet: the crown and the brick just below it, where the weather hits hardest. When a chimney needs masonry repair, we match the brick and mortar to what's there so the repair doesn't stand out on an old house. We show you the damage first and tell you how much of the chimney actually needs work.

Getting to you

We work across the city and the township on Main Street, Ann Arbor Trail, Ann Arbor Road, Sheldon and Beck, and pair Plymouth visits with jobs in Northville and Canton. Downtown streets can be tight for parking, so mention a driveway we can use when you book. Book online and pick a 3-hour arrival window, or call for same-day availability when the schedule allows.