Free written estimate before any work begins
Chimney Sweep in San Bruno, CA
Creosote and soot removed to CSIA standard, with drop cloths down and a HEPA vacuum running the whole time.
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Chimney Sweep for San Bruno homes
San Bruno is a post-war city and the chimneys reflect that almost uniformly. Belle Air, Crestmoor and Rollingwood went up quickly in the 1940s and 1950s to house families working at the airport and the shipyards, and the fireplaces built into those homes were modest, standardised and, in a great many cases, built with a single wythe of brick and no liner at all. That is the defining local issue. It is not dramatic and it rarely announces itself, but a camera in the flue of a typical Crestmoor house frequently finds open mortar joints between the firebox and the roofline. Sitting in the gap in the hills that funnels wind off the ocean, San Bruno stacks also take more direct weather than their neighbors a mile east.
Almost entirely 1940s-1950s tract housing with modest standardised fireplaces, commonly single-wythe brick with no liner. Open interior mortar joints are the routine camera finding. The city sits in a wind gap off the Pacific, so stacks weather harder than in sheltered neighboring cities.
Included in every job
- Chimney fire risk removed
- A fireplace that actually draws
- Problems found while they are cheap
- No mess left behind
Warning signs
When San Bruno homes need this service
- It has been more than a year, or more than a cord of wood, since the last sweep
- Smoke pushes into the room when you light a fire
- A sharp, tarry smell from the fireplace on warm days
- Black, flaky or shiny tar-like deposits visible above the damper
- You hear rustling, scratching or birds in the flue
- The damper is stiff, will not seat, or has rusted in place
- Dark staining spreading on the brick above the opening
Chimney Sweep in San Bruno
Call (209) 447-0752 for same-week availability.
Process
How the visit works
Set up and seal
Drop cloths over the hearth and floor, and the fireplace opening sealed so nothing escapes into the room.
Sweep the full run
Rotary and hand brushes from the firebox through the smoke chamber, throat and flue to the cap, sized to your flue.
Vacuum under negative pressure
A HEPA vacuum runs the whole time so the soot goes into the machine rather than onto your furniture.
Inspect what the brush exposed
Camera and visual check of the liner, damper, smoke shelf and crown now that the surfaces are clean.
Report and photograph
We show you what we found, photograph anything that needs attention, and give you the written estimate before any repair work.
Questions
FAQs
What does an unlined chimney mean for a 1950s San Bruno house?
It means there is no continuous barrier between the fire and the masonry, and in a lot of these houses framing timbers sit close to or against the chimney breast. It does not mean the house is about to burn down, but it does mean a camera inspection is worth doing before you burn much more in it.
Is the wind why my fireplace smokes?
It can be. San Bruno sits in a gap that funnels ocean wind, and a downdraught in an exposed stack pushes smoke back into the room. The fix is usually a correctly specified cap rather than anything structural.
How often should the chimney be swept?
Once a year for anything you burn regularly, and the industry standard is an annual inspection regardless of use. If you burn most evenings through the winter, or you burn wood that was not fully seasoned, it is worth doing before every heating season.
How long does a sweep take?
A straightforward single fireplace usually runs about an hour to ninety minutes. Heavy glazed creosote, a blocked flue or a second fireplace adds time, and we will tell you before we start rather than after.
Contact Alpine Chimney
Alpine Chimney Company
1080 Broadway
Millbrae, CA 94030
(209) 447-0752
info@alpinechimneycompany.com
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Fast response. No obligation.