Chimney repair, inspection and sweep in Salem Township

The hamlet and the farms

Salem Township was farm country from the 1820s on. When the Detroit and Howell Railroad came through in 1873, a hamlet grew up where the tracks crossed Six Mile Road, with stores, two hotels, a school and a milk factory. Brookville and Worden, at Pontiac Trail and Five Mile, were the other early settlements. The Salem Walker Church, built in 1864, still stands.

The hamlet still has houses from its railroad years along Six Mile near the tracks. A chimney on a house that old may have been rebuilt above the roof more than once, or relined for a furnace somewhere along the way, so we look at what's inside before we talk about the outside.

Houses on split-off farm parcels

Over the years, many of the old farms were divided into home sites of 2 to 20 acres, with a few subdivisions on 1 and 2 acre lots. Building was heaviest in the late 1980s and the mid-1990s. The houses from those years are mostly ranches, Cape Cods, colonials and newer farmhouse-style houses, each on its own well and septic system.

On those lots the chimney is often the tallest thing near the house. The one in the photo runs up the outside wall between two gables and stands above both rooflines. That top section takes wind and rain from every side, and the brick and mortar up there wear out first. Our guide to white stains and crumbling chimney brick explains what water does to brick once it gets in.

Gravel roads and wood heat

Salem has more than 30 miles of gravel local roads, and a lot of houses sit back from them in the trees. Leaves and seeds from a woodlot collect in a cap screen, and a screen that's packed shut slows the draft. When we're up there for a cleaning, we clear the cap screen too.

If you burn wood cut off your own land, let it dry for at least six months first. Wet or green wood leaves more creosote in the flue, and how much you burn decides how often the flue needs sweeping. Our guide on how often to clean a chimney goes through it.

Repairs on tall outside chimneys

On a tall chimney like the one in the photo, the work is usually in the top few feet: loose brick, washed-out joints and a crown that has cracked. We take down and relay what has moved, repoint the rest and put a new crown on. You see photos of the damage and get a written quote for the masonry repair before anything starts.

Getting to you

We come into Salem Township on Six Mile, Five Mile and Seven Mile, Pontiac Trail, Napier Road and Gotfredson Road, and pair visits with Northville and Plymouth. Some of the roads out here are gravel, so tell us when you book if your driveway is long or soft. Book online and pick a 3-hour arrival window, or call for same-day availability when the schedule allows.