Chimney Liner Installation in Los Angeles, CA

Why Los Angeles chimneys lose their liners

Ground movement does most of it. Clay tile is rigid and brittle. A jolt shears the mortar joints between tiles. Pieces drop and shelf inside the flue. Pre-1930 bungalows and Spanish-style homes are often worse off: many were built with no liner at all. Just brick and soft lime mortar. Decades of heat opened those joints from the inside.

Relining means running a stainless liner the full height. We measure the tightest point first, not the top. Old estate stacks with two or three flues often have offsets; a rigid liner will not pass them. Sometimes tile has to be broken out by hand from the roof. Wood-burning liners get an insulation wrap. Gas gets sized to the appliance, because an oversized cold flue condenses acid on the metal.

Factory-built prefabs in 1970s–2000s tracts are different. Those are listed systems. You replace sections with the manufacturer's matching pipe, not a generic liner.

A cracked crown or failed flashing should be handled in the same visit. Water entering above the liner will undo the work. Hillside and canyon access, roof pitch, stack height and tile removal are what actually change the labor.

Ask to see the video scan before and after. The footage should show continuous liner, no gaps at the smoke chamber.