Chimney repair in Mercer County, NJ
Most Mercer County homes heat with gas, but in Hopewell Township more than one in four still burn oil. Either way the exhaust often goes up the old brick chimney, and it wears the top of the stack from the inside while the weather works on the outside.
NJ HIC 13VH13268400 · Licensed and insured · Free inspection · Open 24 hoursModern Home Roofing & Chimney repairs brick chimneys across Mercer County, NJ, including Hopewell Township, Pennington, Hamilton and Ewing. In Hopewell Township 28 percent of homes heat with oil, and a boiler venting up the chimney leaves soot and moisture in the flue. We repoint joints, fix crowns, reseal flashing and look down the flue. NJ HIC 13VH13268400.
Oil around Hopewell, gas almost everywhere else
Across Mercer County, gas heats about 71 percent of homes and oil about 6 percent, close to the state rate. The northwest corner is the exception. Oil heats 28 percent of homes in Hopewell Township, 20 percent in Hopewell Borough and 12 percent in Pennington. On many of those houses the boiler still sends its exhaust up a masonry chimney.
Oil exhaust leaves soot in the flue and carries moisture out with it. Gas exhaust carries plenty of water vapor too. Hamilton and Ewing both have a 1964 median, and on many houses that age a gas furnace or water heater may still vent up the original brick. In a flue that runs cold, some of that vapor condenses before it reaches the top and soaks into the liner and the mortar.
Then the weather takes its turn. Mercer sits in the Central Zone, where winter storms often switch between rain and snow. Water gets into an open joint or a cracked crown, freezes overnight, and pushes the brick a little further apart.
So we price a chimney from the top of it, not the driveway. We look at the crown, the brick, the flashing and down the flue.
What we check on a Mercer County chimney
The top of the stack takes the weather on four sides and the exhaust from inside, so that is where we start. We go up when it is safe to and photograph what we find.
At the inspection, we look at
- Which appliances still vent up the flue, oil or gas.
- The flue, where we can see into it, for soot and for cracked or missing liner tiles.
- Cracks in the crown, where rain gets down into the brick.
- The top courses, where the joints usually open first.
- Dark streaks or white residue on the outside of the brick.
- The flashing where the chimney passes through the roof.
If the top courses move when we push on them, new mortar will not hold them. Then we price a rebuild of the top instead. Chimney rebuilding in Mercer County
How a chimney repair works in Mercer County
The top of the chimney gets as much attention as the brick, because that is where most chimney leaks start. All seven steps are on the chimney repair page.
Free inspection
We get up to the top when it is safe to and photograph the cap, crown, flue, brick and flashing.
Written estimate
Which joints, which brick, what else needs work and the price, on paper. Any permit goes on it too.
Repoint and replace bad brick
We grind out the failed mortar, pack in new mortar and tool it to shed water. Cracked brick comes out and new brick goes in.
Fix the top and clean up
If the crown is cracked, the cap is missing or the flashing has lifted, that is on the estimate too. Then we clear the roof and the ground and show you the photos.
Do you need a permit for chimney repair in Mercer County?
It depends on your town. Chimney masonry is not on New Jersey's list of ordinary maintenance or minor work, so the construction office in your town decides what paperwork it needs. Princeton has historic districts, where exterior work needs a preservation plan, though replacing a worn feature with the same material, color and size counts as ordinary maintenance. We check with your town before we start, and any permit goes on the estimate.
What you can check on us first
- Our New Jersey Home Improvement Contractor license is 13VH13268400. Look it up with the Division of Consumer Affairs.
- We carry insurance and can send you the certificate before work starts.
- The inspection is free, and the estimate comes to you in writing.
- We are open 24 hours.
If it is in Mercer County, yes. We cover all 12 municipalities, from East Windsor to West Windsor. Put your ZIP code in the estimate form and we confirm it when we call you back.
Streaks on the brick near the top, sandy grit on the shingles under the chimney, or bits of clay in the cleanout at the base, if there is one. Each one points to moisture or soot working on the flue or the joints. We check all of it at the inspection.
Yes. Gas exhaust carries water vapor, and in a flue that is wider than the furnace needs, it can cool and condense before it gets out. That moisture works on the mortar near the top. If the liner is the problem, we tell you and it goes on the estimate.
It depends on how many joints need repointing, how much brick is cracked, and whether the crown, the cap, the flashing or the liner needs work. A short stack on a one-story roof and a tall one on a two-story house are different jobs. We do not quote over the phone. You get a written price after we have been up top.
Your town decides. Chimney masonry is not on New Jersey's lists of ordinary maintenance or minor work, so the construction office says what paperwork it needs. The town hears from us before work begins, and any permit is listed on the estimate.
See what is happening at the top of your chimney
Tell us your town and how you heat the house. We call you back shortly, climb up to look at the chimney for free, and send you photos with a written price. When fresh mortar will hold, the estimate is for repointing, not a rebuild.
Or call 732-682-9251