Chimney Service in Essex County
Essex has the oldest housing of any New Jersey county. We inspect for free and tell you what an old chimney actually needs, in writing, before work.
About 30 percent of homes in Essex County were built before 1940, the highest share of any county in the state, according to the Census Bureau's 2024 survey. In some towns it is far higher. Six in ten Montclair homes predate 1940, and so do more than half of Maplewood's. Many of those chimneys were never lined, or were lined so long ago that the tile has cracked. South Orange, West Orange and Bloomfield have plenty of the same.
Today 71 percent of Essex homes heat with gas, so most of those old flues now vent a gas furnace or boiler. Newark, the state's largest city, has a different mix again: brick multifamily buildings, rowhouses and two-family homes, with 68 percent on gas heat. Across the county, the chimney problems we look for are the same: open mortar joints, cracked or missing liners, loose bricks at the top and water coming in around the flashing.
Unlined chimneys in Montclair and Maplewood
The New Jersey fire code says a masonry chimney found without a flue liner, with open mortar joints that could let smoke or gases into the house, shall be repaired or relined. That describes many prewar chimneys in Essex. A stainless liner typically runs $1,500 to $5,000, and a cast-in-place liner, which also seals cracks in the old flue, typically runs $2,000 to $7,000.
Montclair's historic preservation rules exempt repairs that don't change the look of a building, including masonry maintenance and like-for-like roofing work. Rebuilding a visible chimney in a different shape or brick, or taking one down, is a different matter in a historic district. We check before rebuilding.
Caldwell freezes more than Newark
NOAA's 1991 to 2020 normals count about 108 nights a year at or below freezing at the Caldwell station in western Essex, against about 80 at Newark airport. More freezing nights means more freeze-thaw cycles in wet brick, so chimneys in Caldwell, Livingston and the hills of West Orange tend to show spalled faces and cracked crowns sooner. Spalled brick replacement typically runs $1,000 to $3,500.
FAQ
Essex County questions
Our Montclair house has three flues. Do you inspect all of them?
Yes. The free inspection covers every flue in the chimney, whether it serves a fireplace, a boiler or a water heater, or is no longer used. We take photos of each and price what each one needs.
Someone knocked on my door in Essex County and said my chimney is about to fall. What should I do?
Ask for photos and for the company's New Jersey contractor registration number, which starts with 13VH. ABC7 reported in 2015 on homeowners, including one in Caldwell, whose chimneys were torn down by a cold-calling company. Get a second look before agreeing to anything.
Do I need a permit to reline a chimney in Newark?
It depends on the liner. Spray-on liner coatings of an existing chimney are listed as ordinary maintenance under the NJ Uniform Construction Code. A stainless liner serving a new or changed appliance generally goes through the town's construction office, and we handle the permit when one is needed.
Is my old chimney worth saving or should it come down?
Most can be saved with repointing, a new crown or a liner. If it is not used and leaks, removal is an option: the stack below the roof typically runs $1,000 to $2,500, and stack plus breast $4,000 to $10,000.
Book online
Pick a day. We'll bring a ladder.
Free inspection in a 3-hour window: 8 to 11, 11 to 2, or 2 to 5. We call to confirm before we arrive.