Chimney Sweep in Burbank, CA

Frequently Asked Questions

We only light the fireplace a handful of times between December and February — does it really need sweeping?

Yes, though probably not as often as a house in a cold climate. Light seasonal use in Burbank means less creosote buildup, but the inspection half of the visit matters more here than the brushing. A chimney that sits unused most of the year is a chimney that collects bird nests, spider webs, loose mortar crumbs and debris in the smoke chamber, and nobody notices until the first cold night in December when the room fills with smoke. An annual look before you light it is the sensible rhythm for most Valley homes.

Our house is a 1940s single-story stucco with the original brick fireplace. What usually turns up wrong?

A few things repeat constantly in that housing stock. The clay tile liners often have cracked or offset joints, sometimes from decades of heat cycling and sometimes from the 1994 Northridge quake. The fireboxes are shallow with low, single-wide openings, so the original firebrick and mortar joints take a beating and open up over time. And the crowns on these older masonry stacks are usually thin and cracked. We also see a lot of chimneys that were rebuilt shorter or steel-braced after Northridge, where the repair was done well but the flashing or crown work was an afterthought.

It barely rains here. Why would water be a problem for my chimney?

That's exactly why it's a problem. Low rainfall totals mean a cracked crown or failed flashing goes unnoticed for years because nothing is driving water into it. Then one heavy winter storm blows through and the water finds every one of those openings at once. Homeowners call us with stains on the firebox floor, a damp smell in the room, or white efflorescence on the brick face and are surprised because the chimney "has been fine forever." It hasn't been fine, it just hasn't been tested. Checking the crown and flashing before the rainy season is the whole point.

What determines the cost of a sweep on a Burbank home?

The single-story stucco and ranch homes that make up most of Burbank are straightforward to work on — low flat roofs on flat Valley ground, no steep pitches or multi-story climbs, and the modest brick fireboxes with single-wide openings are quick to work. That keeps a standard sweep at the simpler end of the scale. What moves the number is what we find: a chimney that was shortened and steel-braced after Northridge, or one converted to Class A metal pipe inside a framed chase, takes a different kind of inspection than original masonry. Heavy buildup, an unlined or cracked flue, or crown repair are all separate work and we walk you through what's needed before anything gets done.