Chimney Sweep in Endwell, NY

The Two-Flue Chimney

Look up at most Endwell rooftops and you'll see one brick chimney with two clay tiles sticking out the top. One is the fireplace flue, the other the furnace and water heater flue. They live side by side but age differently. The fireplace flue gets used a few weekends a year and mostly collects dust and the odd bird nest. The furnace flue works every day from October to May.

Gas and oil exhaust carry a lot of water vapor. In a warm, right-sized flue that vapor goes straight out the top. In a big, cold clay flue it condenses, runs down the tile joints and slowly dissolves the mortar. We find more crumbled mortar and fallen tile chunks at the bottom of Endwell furnace flues than anywhere else in the house. The cure is a stainless liner sized to what's actually burning down there.

The Crown on Top

Builders in the 1950s often finished the chimney top with a thin, flat mortar wash instead of a real crown. Eighty winters later it's cracked, and water runs straight into the brick. A crack you could slide a coin into calls for a rebuilt crown with a drip edge. Hairline cracks can usually be sealed with a flexible crown coat for a fraction of the price.

Fireplaces That Sat Unused

A lot of Endwell fireplaces went cold for twenty or thirty years and are now being lit again by new owners. Before that first fire, have it swept and looked at. Unused flues collect nests, leaves and fallen mortar, dampers rust shut or rust open, and a crack in a clay tile can sit unnoticed for decades. We'd rather find that on a camera screen in July than have you find it with a living room full of smoke. If everything checks out, you light the fire and enjoy it. If not, you know exactly what it takes and what it costs before you spend a dime.

Weather, River and Brick

Endwell shares Binghamton's numbers: roughly 86 inches of snow a year and about 133 days below freezing. Every time wet brick freezes, it gets pushed apart a little. Mortar joints soften, then sand out, then brick faces start to pop off. That's why the top few feet of an old chimney always look worse than the part below the roofline.

The Susquehanna runs along the south edge of Endwell, and the 2011 flood put water into basements along the river side of town. If yours flooded, check the chimney cleanout and the base of the flue. Silt can sit in the bottom of a flue for years, and when it blocks the furnace connection, exhaust can spill back into the basement. A working carbon monoxide alarm, which New York requires, is your backstop.

Types of Chimney Service We Offer in Endwell

Chimney Liners

Stainless liners for gas and oil furnaces, water heaters, inserts and stoves. Sized to the appliance, with a top plate and cap.

Chimney Waterproofing

A breathable water repellent on the brick and a flexible seal at the flashing. We never use a sealer that traps moisture inside the chimney.

Chimney Sweeping and Inspection

Both flues brushed and vacuumed, then checked from top to bottom. Our first flue is $250 and the second is $150 on the same visit.

Crown Repair and Caps

Crown coat for hairline cracks, a full rebuild for broken crowns, and one cap that covers both flues.

Repointing

We grind out failed joints and repack them with mortar that suits 1950s brick, then clean the face so the repair blends in.

Endwell Price Guide

East along I-81 and the river, the farmhouses and hamlets of Kirkwood run on a lot more wood heat. Our page for chimney sweep service in Kirkwood covers what we do out there.