Sweep & inspection
Caps & crowns
Flue relining
Masonry repair
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 Inspection Across Lauderdale Lakes
A chimney inspection in Lauderdale Lakes runs $249 for a standard Level 1, $499 – $1,400 for a Level 2 with camera scoping, and we schedule most visits within 3 to 5 business days. If you live in a 1970s or 1980s concrete-block home here, your chimney is almost certainly grandfathered under Florida’s `1992 air-quality rules` and has a clay tile flue that humidity has been working against for 40-plus years. At Ashby Chimney Fort Lauderdale, Nathan Corliss and our crew know exactly what those older flues look like on a camera feed, and we won’t recommend a liner replacement you don’t need. Call (754) 354-1451 when you’re ready to book.
Why Ashby Chimney Fort Lauderdale Is Lauderdale Lakes’s Preferred Chimney Inspection Company
Since 2002, Ashby Chimney Fort Lauderdale has operated under the Kingswell Guarantee. What that means for you in Lauderdale Lakes is a written price before anyone climbs onto your roof, a written guarantee after the work is done, and a free second visit if a repair we made fails inside the guarantee period. Our techs are background-checked and uniformed. You know who is walking through your door before they arrive. And when you call, a real person answers. Not a voicemail loop, not a call back in two days.
We’ve worked enough Lauderdale Lakes chimneys to know that most of them are not dirty. Most of them are wet. That matters because the inspection you need here is not the same inspection a Fort Lauderdale high-rise owner needs. Our Chimney Inspection team carries camera scopes on every Level 2 job and shows you the footage directly, because a tech who won’t show you the picture is a tech who’s about to sell you something you can’t verify. Whether you’re off W Oakland Park Blvd, near Lauderdale Lakes Middle School, or over by Vincent Torres Memorial Park, we’ll tell you the same thing: no recommendation without evidence you can see for yourself.
Styles & brands we work with
Chimney Fire in Lauderdale Lakes
A Chimney Fire in a Lauderdale Lakes home rarely starts because the flue is overloaded with soot. It starts because a hairline crack in a clay tile has let heat reach framing or because spalled mortar has fallen and blocked the smoke path. Calling it a “fire risk” without showing you the crack is not an inspection, it’s a sales pitch. We’ll scope the flue and show you what’s actually there.
The Camera Tells You What a Visual Check Cannot
Visual-only inspections miss hairline cracks in clay tile, the kind that open up under heat and allow gases or embers through. In Lauderdale Lakes, humidity cycling does that. The tile expands and contracts through wet summers and the occasional cold snap. Over 40 years, that movement cracks the tile. A camera scope catches it the first time. A flashlight check often doesn’t.
Why Glaze Becomes a Sideshow
We get calls from homeowners who were told their chimney has “third-degree creosote glaze” and now needs a chemical treatment or a full rebuild. In most Lauderdale Lakes fireplaces that get lit once or twice a winter, the creosote buildup is minimal. The real issue is more often spalled mortar falling into the smoke chamber after years of rain absorption. Our job is to tell you which one it actually is. A typical chimney fire risk evaluation as part of a Level 2 inspection costs between $150 and $300, depending on the flue height and access.
Level 2 Chimney Inspection in Lauderdale Lakes
A Level 2 Chimney Inspection in Lauderdale Lakes is what you need when you’ve just bought a home, you’ve had a fire, you’re switching fuel types, or you’ve lit your fireplace for the first time in years and smoke poured back into the living room. That last scenario is the one we get most often from Lauderdale Lakes homeowners. It is almost never a dirty flue. It is a cracked clay liner or a rusted-open damper, and a Level 2 with camera scoping is the only way to confirm it without opening up the wall.
What You Get With the Camera Scope
Our tech lowers a camera down the full length of the flue and records the entire pass. You’ll see hairline cracks in the clay tiles, gaps in the mortar joints, spalling, and any moisture staining. If the liner needs work, our recommendation follows the scope result, not the other way around. You don’t get quoted for a rebuild because the tech “thinks he saw something.” You get shown the crack on a screen, photographed, and added to a report we walk you through.
Dampers That Rust, Crowns That Crack
Rusted dampers are the most over-written item in Lauderdale Lakes inspections. A tech flags a rusted damper, writes up a full replacement, and never mentions that the rust came from a cracked chimney crown letting rain straight down the flue. That’s upselling the symptom and ignoring the cause. Here, the subtropical rain pattern is the cause. We check the crown and the cap first, because fixing those stops the water. The damper may still need replacing, but only after the water source is dead.
Trusted Brands We Service in Lauderdale Lakes
When a repair is actually needed in a Lauderdale Lakes chimney, we don’t patch with whatever was left in the van. We stock and install materials from Gelco smoke chambers and dampers, HeatShield resurfacing systems for cracked clay liners, and Copperfield chimney caps and termination kits. These are the brands the serious chimney trade uses, and we keep common parts on hand for the 1960s-1980s masonry chimneys that dominate this city. That means less waiting on a distributor when your flue needs resurfacing and you want to use your fireplace for the two nights a year it actually gets cold.
Common Chimney Inspection Problems We See in Lauderdale Lakes Homes
- Cracked clay flue liners that only show under heat. Hairline cracks from humidity cycling are nearly invisible during a visual check but open when the flue gets hot. Camera scoping is the only reliable way to catch them before they become a chimney fire risk.
- Rusted-open dampers caused by crown leaks, not by age alone. Our subtropical rain pounds chimney crowns all summer. Once the crown cracks, water runs down the flue and rusts the damper from above. You fix the crown first, then decide on the damper.
- Spalling mortar in the smoke chamber. In homes near NW 31st Avenue and along NW 44th Street, years of rain absorption flake off the mortar joints inside the chimney. The flue itself can be relatively clean, but the chamber is dropping debris that blocks smoke flow.
- Water staining on the chase or ceiling near the fireplace. That’s usually a flashing problem at the roofline, not a liner problem. But once you have moisture coming in, you need a Level 2 inspection to rule out liner damage before you spend money on flashing repair alone.
See the difference
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AfterPricing for Chimney Inspection in Lauderdale Lakes, FL
A Level 1 inspection in Lauderdale Lakes runs $249 for a standard single-story masonry chimney. A Level 2 with full camera scoping runs $499 to $800 for most 1970s-1980s ranch homes; larger chimneys or condos with shared chase construction in buildings like those near the Lauderdale Lakes Library run closer to $900 to $1,400 if extensive access is required. The cost depends on flue height, roof access, and whether the chimney serves multiple appliances. Every inspection gets a written price before we start, and the number on the invoice is the number we quoted at the door. Call (754) 354-1451 for a free estimate and we’ll tell you exactly which level your chimney needs.
We Also Serve Cities Near Lauderdale Lakes
Ashby Chimney Fort Lauderdale handles inspections across Lauderdale Lakes and the surrounding South Florida corridor, including Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, Pompano Beach, and Aventura. Our dispatch comes from the Miami (South FL) office, but the crews you’ll see in Lauderdale Lakes work this area week in and week out. They know these chimneys because they’ve been inside hundreds of them.
Serving Lauderdale Lakes, FL - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Lauderdale Lakes 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 Inspection in Lauderdale Lakes
Because the problem is not soot. Your clay tile liner has almost certainly cracked from years of humidity cycling, and those cracks open when the flue heats up. Cold air sitting in the flue all year masks the issue until a hot fire expands the tile and opens the crack. A visual check from the top or the firebox simply cannot see it. You need a camera-scoped Level 2 inspection to confirm the crack and measure how far it runs. Call (754) 354-1451 and we’ll show you the footage ourselves.
Yes, and not for the reason you’d think. An unused chimney is still getting rained on, still absorbing humidity, still expanding and contracting in the subtropical heat. Moisture does more damage than fire in Lauderdale Lakes. The crown cracks, the damper rusts open, and the liner deteriorates from the outside in. Even if you never light a fire, you should have a Level 1 inspection every year and a camera scope every two years if you’re buying or selling. The humidity doesn’t check your burn schedule before it starts working on your mortar.
Look at where the stains are. Rust running down the exterior of the chase near the roofline usually points to flashing failure. Rust staining visible inside the firebox, around the damper frame and the throat, points to a damper that’s been wet from above. The only way to be certain is to open the damper and look for water paths, which is part of any Level 2 inspection. One note: if the flashing is leaking and left alone, the water will eventually reach the damper and the liner. Don’t treat the surface stain until the entry point is found.
No, and we run into this one frequently. Most Lauderdale Lakes fireplaces are lit a handful of times per year. They don’t accumulate third-degree creosote the way a daily-use wood stove does. If a tech claims glaze warrants a liner replacement, ask to see the camera footage showing the glaze and the cracks. If they won’t show you footage, get a second opinion. More often, the real issue in a 1970s or 1980s chimney here is spalled mortar and cracked clay tile from moisture, not creosote at all. HeatShield resurfacing fixes the cracked tile for a fraction of a full rebuild, and only if the camera actually shows cracks.
A Level 1 inspection is visual only. The tech looks at the accessible parts of the chimney, checks the damper, and confirms nothing is visibly blocking the flue. A Level 2 adds camera scoping inside the flue and evaluates the liner, mortar joints, and smoke chamber in detail. In a Lauderdale Lakes condo, especially older low-rise buildings where a shared chase may vent multiple fireplaces, a Level 2 is usually what a buyer or seller needs during a real estate transaction. Level 1 works for annual checkups on a fireplace that has been recently inspected with a camera. Both should carry a written report.
Contact Ashby Chimney Fort Lauderdale for Your Chimney Inspection in Lauderdale Lakes
If you’ve got a 1970s ranch with a fireplace you haven’t lit in five years, or a condo unit where the inspector flagged the fireplace and you don’t know if the report is honest, call us. We’ll book a time that works, show up in a marked van, and put the price in writing before we touch anything. Nathan Corliss and our crew have been doing this in South Florida since 2002, and we’ll show you what’s actually going on inside your flue, not sell you a guess. Call (754) 354-1451 for a free estimate.
Written by Nathan Corliss, Owner at Ashby Chimney Fort Lauderdale, serving Lauderdale Lakes and nearby South Florida communities.