Masonry repair
Sweep & inspection
Caps & crowns
Flue relining
Gas fireplace serviceLevel 1 sweep and inspection to the NFPA 211 annual standard - flue, crown, cap, and flashing checked and photographed
Chimney sweep logs do not sweep chimneys. They loosen some creosote - which then falls where a brush and vacuum still have to collect it.
Fast, Reliable Chimney Repair Across Pasadena
Chimney repair in Pasadena typically costs $350 – $2,800 depending on the scope, and most jobs start with a camera inspection so you can see exactly what needs fixing before you approve a dime. Flint Chimney Co Pasadena serves homes from Bungalow Heaven to Madison Heights with written, flat pricing agreed before any work begins. If you’ve noticed crumbling mortar, a rusted cap, or smoke backing into the living room, call (626) 657-5513 for a free estimate.
Why Flint Chimney Co Pasadena Is Pasadena’s Preferred Chimney Repair Company
We’ve worked on Pasadena chimneys long enough to know what the pre-1940 housing stock throws at us: single-wythe brick that spalls in dry heat, clay tile liners cracked by decades of seismic settling, and fireboxes built for coal that were never meant to vent a modern gas log set. Our Chimney Repair team sees the same failures repeat across the city’s Craftsman bungalows and Spanish Colonial Revivals, which means we diagnose faster and quote tighter than a company driving in cold from another market.
Hank Delano leads the crew here. Every job gets a written price before the first tool comes off the truck, and every repair carries the 365-Day Done Right Promise: a written guarantee valid for a full year, with a free return visit if a covered repair fails. Phones are answered by a live person around the clock. When a Pasadena homeowner calls, they don’t get routed through a call center. They get a straight answer about what we can do and what it will cost.
Styles & brands we work with
Chimney Cap Replacement in Pasadena
Chimney cap replacement in Pasadena often becomes urgent in spring, when chimney swifts and squirrels start looking for nesting sites in the city’s original, uncapped masonry chimneys. A proper replacement involves removing the old cap (or installing one where none existed), sizing a stainless unit to the flue, and securing it with mechanical fasteners, not caulk. In Pasadena, a standard stainless steel cap replacement typically runs $280 – $620. Custom multi-flue caps or caps with animal-exclusion mesh run higher, usually $650 – $950.
Animal Exclusion and Debris Guard
In neighborhoods like Bungalow Heaven, where original chimneys often lack caps, birds and squirrels get into flues every spring. We install Famco stainless caps with exclusion mesh sized to keep animals out while maintaining draft. The cost is predictable because we quote it before booking.
When a Damaged Cap Needs Replacing
Rust, warped screens, or a cap that blew off in a Santa Ana wind event leaves the flue open to rain, debris, and embers. If water has been getting in, we’ll camera-scan below the cap line to check for hidden spalling before we quote the fix. You see what the camera sees, so the repair scope is never a mystery.
Chimney Liner Installation in Pasadena
Chimney liner installation in Pasadena is frequently required on pre-1940 Arts and Crafts and Spanish Colonial homes where the original clay tile flue has cracked or separated, often due to decades of seismic movement. A new stainless liner restores a continuous, insulated path for smoke and gases. In Pasadena, a standard single-flue stainless reline using DuraFlex typically runs $1,800 – $2,800. The exact price depends on flue height, access, and whether the old tile liner must be removed first.
When a Clay Tile Flue Fails
Clay tile liners crack under heat stress and ground movement. Once a flue has open gaps or missing mortar joints, combustion gases can leak into wall cavities. A Level 2 camera inspection shows exactly where the liner has failed, and we’ll hand you the footage before recommending a reline.
Gas Appliance Conversion Safety
Many Pasadena homeowners have switched an old wood fireplace to a gas log set without upgrading the chimney. An unlined masonry flue was never built to vent gas appliances. Relining with a properly sized stainless liner brings the venting path up to current code; in fact, the local housing stock makes this one of the few Pasadena-specific repairs we recommend proactively.
Trusted Brands We Service in Pasadena
We work with professional-grade materials from Olympia Chimney, Famco, and Copperfield, and we install DuraFlex stainless liners on reline jobs. Because we stock common parts for the repair issues we see across Pasadena (caps, flashing, liner components, and repair mortars), most replacement work doesn’t wait on a backorder. When we quote a repair, the brand and spec are written into the price. You can look up the material before you approve the job.
Common Chimney Repair Problems We See in Pasadena Homes
- Spalling bricks from dry heat and age. Single-wythe brick chimneys soak up decades of Pasadena’s low-humidity summers, and the face of the brick starts to flake off. Left alone, the structural core loses integrity.
- Creosote glaze from sporadic use. Pasadena’s mild climate means fireplaces sit unused for months. When they do get used, the flue never gets hot enough to burn off early-stage creosote, and a hard glaze builds up. That glaze is a chimney-fire fuel source.
- Hidden smoke chamber cracks. We find these regularly on 1920s Craftsman chimneys. Cracks behind the damper let heat and gas move into framing. A visual sweep inspection will not catch them. A camera scan will.
- Missing mortar joints from chimney settling. Chimneys on fill soil or hillside lots around Pasadena settle and shift. The masonry cracks, water gets in, and freeze-thaw damage is replaced by slow, continuous moisture migration. Repointing fixes it if caught early.
See the difference
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AfterPricing for Chimney Repair in Pasadena, CA
A typical small repair in Pasadena (mortar repointing or a minor flashing patch) runs $350 – $700. Mid-range work like crown repair or chimney waterproofing lands between $600 – $1,400. Full chimney rebuilding on a badly spalled two-story chimney runs $3,500 – $6,000 or more, and we only recommend that when camera evidence shows the structure is genuinely failing. Some factors affect price: access from the roof, flue height, whether scaffolding is needed, and whether tile removal is required. Every quote is written, itemized, and agreed before work starts. Call (626) 657-5513 for a free estimate.
We Also Serve Cities Near Pasadena
Our Chimney Repair in Pasadena team also covers Altadena, San Gabriel, Temple City, and Rosemead. If you’re just outside city limits, we’ll still provide the same written pricing and camera-inspected repair scope. Call and tell us your cross streets; we’ll confirm coverage and get you scheduled.
Serving Pasadena, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Pasadena area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs About Chimney Repair in Pasadena
Once a year, even with occasional use. Occasional winter fires in a Pasadena fireplace actually make creosote glaze form faster, because the flue never gets hot enough to fully burn off soot. An annual Level 1 inspection catches creosote buildup, cap damage from Santa Ana winds, and any new masonry cracks before they get worse. If the house is pre-1940 and has never had a camera scan, get a Level 2 once. Call (626) 657-5513 to schedule.
The damper and the flue, in that order. A jammed or misaligned damper traps smoke on the wrong side of the firebox and backdrafts it into the house. If the damper works, the next suspect is a partially blocked flue (debris, a nest, or a creosote glaze restricting draft) or a chimney that was never properly sized for the fireplace. This can also indicate a hidden crack, which pushes carbon monoxide risk up. Call (626) 657-5513 and describe the smell: wood smoke vs. a chemical smell helps us triage before we arrive.
No. Third-degree creosote is a hard, glazed coating, not a loose powder. Brushing alone leaves most of it on the flue wall. You need chemical treatment (like a creosote remover applied and baked in across two visits) or mechanical glazed-creosote removal with specialized tools. We’ll camera-scan first to confirm the buildup stage, and the written quote will say exactly which method we’re using. Call (626) 657-5513 for an assessment.
No, don’t wait. During spring nesting season (peak in Pasadena’s Bungalow Heaven and Madison Heights), chimney swifts and squirrels build nests inside uncovered flues. Each day a nest grows, the blockage worsens. Once birds hatch, federal rules protect the nest until the young fledge, and removal gets legally complicated. The fix is a Famco stainless cap with animal-exclusion mesh, installed for $280 – $620 depending on flue size. Call (626) 657-5513 before the birds settle in.
Maybe. Clay tile flues in pre-1940 Pasadena homes often look intact from the top but have hidden cracks from seismic settling, heat stress, or poor original mortar work. If a camera scan shows solid tile with tight joints and no gas leakage, you do not need a new liner. If we see cracks, gaps, or spalling anywhere in the flue (even behind a smoke chamber, as in the Bungalow Heaven house where our tech found hidden spall damage behind a squirrel nest), a DuraFlex stainless reline is the correct repair, at $1,800 – $2,800. If the tile is intact, we’ll tell you plainly and recommend the cap or minor repair you actually need. Call (626) 657-5513 to book a Level 2 camera inspection.
Contact Flint Chimney Co Pasadena
Need a straight answer about your chimney? Call Flint Chimney Co Pasadena at (626) 657-5513 for a free estimate. We serve Pasadena, Altadena, San Gabriel, Temple City, and Rosemead with written pricing, camera inspections, and repairs backed by a 365-day written guarantee. Hank Delano and the crew will show up in uniform, explain what the camera shows, and hand you a written price before any work starts.
Written by Hank Delano, Owner at Flint Chimney Co Pasadena, serving Pasadena and the San Gabriel Valley.