Chimney Inspections
Lucky Sully Chimney Sweep has been serving southern California since 2004
Chimney Inspection (video)
At Lucky Sully, we place a very high emphasis on a thorough inspection. In the past, we used to charge at least $200 extra for a video inspection. Now we include a video inspection on all chimneys which will allow us to insert our cameras. We have invested in equipment which provides very high resolution pictures and we send the video to you after we have done the inspection so you can see that it is your chimney and that there is no doubt in your mind that the pictures have not been altered in any way.
We had a customer where we filmed their chimney and their contractor thought the pictures had been altered to show cracks. The homeowner reviewed every single picture and realized that the contractor was wrong and had us do the service.
Many chimney sweeps still use a handheld mirror to inspect a chimney. This may be fine in a very short chimney, and with a sweep who has excellent vision. We had seen many chimneys where we could not see the cracks ourselves which were very visible once we did the video inspection.
The CSIA Levels of Inspection
Level 1
This is the most basic and least comprehensive inspection. This is a visual inspection of the readily accessible parts of your chimney and fireplace including the firebox, damper, flue opening and exterior of the chimney that protrudes from your roof. This is a common inspection when conducting seasonal cleaning that is repeated every year.
Level 2
A level 2 inspection is similar to a level 1 inspection, only more thorough. It covers everything that is covered in a level 1 inspection, but examines the interior more closely. A level 2 inspection involves the use of a camera which is run up or down the entirety of the inside of the chimney. Level 2 inspections are recommended before making any changes to your chimney and fireplace, when you have experienced a chimney issue, and before you buy a house with a chimney. We at Lucky Sully usually conduct a level 2 inspection on most properties as we feel that it is too easy to miss a hazardous condition with just a visual inspection. We do not charge our customers extra for this additional service.
Level 3
Covers the same things involved with Level 1 and 2 inspections but also involves the removal of parts of the chimney to access concealed areas of the chimney and is usually only done as a result of something found during one of the previous inspections and less than 1% of inspections fall into this category.
What You Can Expect when a Lucky Sully Chimney Technician Inspects Your Chimney
The Technician will do each of the following:
- Conduct a visual inspection of the inside portion of your fireplace.
- Put down protective floor coverings in front of your fireplace.
- Go up on the roof and do a visual inspection of the portion of your chimney above the roof.
- Inspect your chimney using video camera. This is usually done from the top down, but when this is not possible we do it from the fireplace. When we do it from the roof, we make sure that the video shows that it is your property. We provide a link to the video after the inspection.
- If needed, or if cleaning has been requested, sweep the firebox, damper, smoke shelf, smoke chamber, flue, and gas logs, if appropriate.
- Provide a written report and repair estimate describing the condition of the chimney and show you pictures and video of any potential problems discovered.
- Clean up all work areas.
No work is ever done without customer authorization after an estimate of the cost.
