Serving Piedmont Homes: Chimney, Fireplace & Dryer Vent Service

Chimney services in Piedmont: the work you can book

Homes in Piedmont can book sweeping and creosote removal, blockage and nest removal, chimney and camera inspections, masonry, crown and liner repair, fireplace and wood stove cleaning, gas fireplace service, and dryer vent cleaning. For most homeowners the first visit is a sweep or an inspection. Whatever turns up then, such as cracked masonry or a rusted cap, decides what comes next.

Chimney caps and spark arrestors for Piedmont homes

Our page on chimney cap installation for homes in Piedmont covers fitting a new cap or a spark-arrestor screen on a chimney or stovepipe outlet. You need it when the top of the flue is bare, when the old cap's mesh has rusted or torn, or when an animal has worked its way past a damaged screen. If the crown or masonry that holds the cap is cracked, that goes to chimney repair first, so the new cap has a sound surface to mount on.

What Piedmont's vegetation-management code means for your chimney

A spark arrestor on every functioning chimney or stovepipe

Piedmont's vegetation-management code (City Code 8.14.030, Ordinance 755 N.S.) applies to developed parcels citywide and requires installing a spark arrestor on functioning chimneys or stovepipe outlets. Source: City of Piedmont, Ordinance No. 755 N.S., Adopting Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone Map and Vegetation Management Requirements.

A spark arrestor is a metal mesh screen over the flue outlet. It lets smoke out and catches embers before they leave the chimney. Many chimney caps have one built in, but some older caps don't, and a bare flue tile has nothing at all. The mesh also needs upkeep. Soot and creosote can clog it and choke the draft, so we clean the screen as part of a sweep. A chimney inspection includes the top of the flue, so you'll know whether a screen is there and whether it's still intact.

Ten feet of clearance between trees and the chimney

Piedmont's City Code 8.14.030 (Ordinance 755 N.S.) requires owners of developed parcels to remove all portions of trees within 10 feet of functioning chimneys or stovepipe outlets. Source: City of Piedmont, Ordinance No. 755 N.S.

Branches close to a chimney sit in the path of anything that escapes the flue. They also drop leaves and twigs onto the cap, and nesting animals use them to reach the opening. Removing the branches is tree work for the owner to arrange. When we're on the roof for a sweep or inspection, we can tell you if limbs look close to the outlet. If debris or a nest has already worked its way into the flue, we can clear it.

Adding a fireplace or stove in Piedmont

A new wood-burning fireplace, insert or stove adds a functioning chimney or stovepipe outlet, so both code requirements apply once it's in use. If you're planning fireplace installation, decide where the flue will exit and how close it will be to trees before work starts. Plan for a spark-arrestor cap as part of the project.