Chimney cleaning · Carlisle, PA
Chimney sweeping and Level I, II and III inspections for fireplaces, stoves and furnace flues
Dust-free sweeping of fireplace, wood stove, furnace and gas flues, with a Level I, II or III inspection to NFPA 211.
What a neglected flue looks like
Most chimney trouble starts the same few ways. Creosote builds up on the flue walls with every wood fire. Cracks and leaks open in the masonry or the liner. Nesting animals, debris and loose soot block the passage. A damaged liner lets the fire's heat and gases get at parts of the house they were never meant to reach.
The signs you can notice from the living room are smoke that drifts back into the room, a sharp odor when the fireplace is cold, and a draft that has gone sluggish. Any one of them is reason enough to book a sweep rather than wait for the next heating season.
The baseline is simple: have any chimney that serves a furnace, fireplace, gas appliance or wood stove swept at least once a year, ideally before the heating season starts. Sweep it earlier if you are about to light a fireplace that has sat unused for a long while, if you are buying or selling the house, or if a hard storm has just gone through Cumberland County.
Brick chimney with a white sealed crown, an open clay flue tile and a stainless rain cap
Level I, Level II and Level III inspections, explained
Our sweeps are professional, courteous and set up for dust-free chimney cleaning, so the soot and creosote come out of the flue without ending up on your furniture. Every sweep is paired with an inspection, and the inspection level is set by what is going on with your system, following NFPA 211 (National Fire Protection Association) as taught by the Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA).
Level I is the routine annual look at the readily accessible parts of the chimney. It happens during a regular sweeping or when one appliance is swapped for a like appliance. Level II applies when the system changes, such as a new appliance or a different fuel, when a property is sold, before a flue is relined, and after a malfunction. It typically goes further than Level I, into attics and crawlspaces and down the flue interior with a camera.
Level III is the most intensive and is reserved for a Level I or Level II that points to a serious hidden hazard. It is the exception, not the plan, and we only recommend it when the earlier findings call for it.
When to call us again
Put the annual sweep on the calendar for early fall and the inspection rides along with it. Call sooner after a major storm, after a chimney fire or an appliance that misbehaved, or when you switch fuels, because those events move you from a Level I to a Level II.
If something is wrong in the flue, we will tell you what the repair actually needs, and sometimes that is nothing. The office in Carlisle takes calls at 717-601-2595, and emergency service is available around the clock.
"...they get the job done without making a mess and are affordable." Jeremy Kelley, Google review.