Chimney repair on Long Island, done by the people who own the roof around it.

Because the brick face is rarely the leak. Water almost always gets in at the crown (the concrete slab on top), at a missing or undersized cap, or at the flashing joint where the chimney passes through the roof. From the ground the brick can look perfect while a hairline crown crack is feeding water straight down the inside of the stack. We inspect the top of the chimney and the roof joint before we quote anything, so you pay to fix the actual entry point rather than repointing brick that was never the problem.

On a typical Long Island chimney, repointing the exposed section runs roughly $900 to $2,800 depending on height, access and how much joint has to be ground out. A crown rebuild is usually $700 to $1,800. A partial rebuild above the roofline generally lands between $2,500 and $6,500, and a full rebuild down to the firebox runs $8,000 to $20,000+ because it involves staging, demolition and often a new liner. Every number is confirmed in writing after we have physically been on the roof.

You need one if the existing clay tile liner is cracked or missing, if you have converted from oil to gas, or if the flue was never sized for the appliance now venting through it. A cracked liner lets combustion gases and moisture reach the masonry from the inside — that is what turns a solid chimney into a crumbling one. A stainless steel liner is the standard fix, it is insulated, and it typically carries a lifetime manufacturer warranty. If your liner is intact and correctly sized, we will tell you so and leave it alone.

We are a masonry and roofing contractor, not a sweep. We handle the structure and the waterproofing — crowns, caps, flashing, repointing, liners, rebuilds — and we run a camera up the flue as part of our inspection. If that scan shows creosote buildup or a blockage, we will tell you exactly what we saw and refer you to a certified sweep for the cleaning. We do not upsell you a service we are not the right trade for.

Once a year, ideally in the fall before the first freeze. Long Island chimneys take a beating: repeated freeze-thaw cycles push water into every hairline crack and split the masonry from inside, and homes near the shore get salt air on top of that. An annual look at the crown, cap, flashing and mortar joints costs nothing with us and is the difference between a $1,200 repointing job and an $11,000 rebuild five winters later.

Stainless caps and stainless liners carry their own manufacturer warranties, typically lifetime, and we hand you that paperwork at the walkthrough. Coverage varies by component, so we go through what applies to your chimney with you before you sign.