Chimney inspection in West Bloomfield

Westacres and the older houses

Westacres was built in 1936 as a planned community of 150 houses, each about 1,144 square feet on an acre of land, financed by Senator James Couzens with a federal grant. Those houses are ninety years old now. A chimney that age may have clay flue tiles that have cracked or come apart at the joints, and nothing outside will show it. If a furnace or water heater vents into the chimney, we check that flue too.

Larger houses with several fireplaces

Houses built from the 1980s through the 2000s often have two or three fireplaces, some wood and some gas, and some of them factory-built. They may vent through one tall chase or through separate chimneys. Each flue needs a look, and a factory-built fireplace needs its parts checked against how it was designed to go together.

Gas fireplaces are easy to forget because they burn clean. Their flues can still be blocked by a nest or by debris that fell in while the fireplace sat unused.

Level 1 or Level 2

A Level 1 inspection is $49, and the $49 is credited toward any repair or service we do after it. We look at the fireplace, the flue, the crown or chase cover, and the flashing.

A Level 2 inspection is $149. It adds the chimney areas in the attic, basement and crawl space, and a camera through the flue. It's used for home sales, changes to the system, and after a chimney fire or storm. Lake houses draw careful buyers, and a Level 2 before you list means the chimney won't surprise anyone late in the sale. Our guide to chimney inspection levels explains the difference, and the camera can be added to a Level 1 for $75.

After the inspection

An inspection of one chimney takes about an hour. With several fireplaces it takes longer, so tell us how many when you book. We walk you through what we found in plain language, with photos. If a fireplace will get regular use this winter, the chimney sweep and cleaning in West Bloomfield includes the inspection on the same visit for $349.