Chimney rebuilding in Ocean County, NJ
Only 4 percent of Ocean County homes were built before 1940, but in Island Heights it is 39 percent and in Bay Head 34. When a chimney that old will not hold mortar at the top, we take it down to sound brick and lay it back up.
NJ HIC 13VH13268400 · Licensed and insured · Free inspection · Open 24 hoursModern Home Roofing & Chimney rebuilds brick chimneys across Ocean County, NJ, including Island Heights, Bay Head, Seaside Park and Ocean Gate. In those towns, 28 to 39 percent of homes were built before 1940. When the top of the stack will not hold mortar, we take it down to sound brick and build it back. NJ HIC 13VH13268400.
Where the oldest chimneys in the county stand
Ocean County as a whole is young. Fewer than 4 in 100 homes were built before 1940. The older houses sit in a handful of towns: 39 percent of homes in Island Heights, 34 in Bay Head, 28 in Seaside Park and Ocean Gate, and 25 in Pine Beach. A brick chimney on one of those houses has been through more than eighty winters.
In a chimney that old, repointing only goes so far. Once the crown has split through and the top courses move under a hand, fresh mortar packed around loose brick does not hold. The stack has to come down to where the brick is sound.
Near the water, nor'easters drive rain into the brick from the side, most often between October and April, and the flashing at the roof line takes salt air. In Pine Beach 18 percent of homes still heat with oil. If yours is one of them, the rebuild is the time to look at the liner, while the stack is open.
So a rebuild is never priced from the ground. We go up, find where the sound brick starts, and show you that line in the photos.
How we decide an Ocean County chimney needs rebuilding
We would rather price a repair than a rebuild, and we only write up a rebuild when the brick will not take new mortar. These are what decide it.
At the inspection, we look at
- Brick at the top that shifts when we push on it.
- A crown split from one side to the other.
- How many courses down the joints are empty.
- Any lean, or a gap where the chimney meets the house.
- What still vents up the flue, and the liner where we can see it.
- Rusted flashing at the roof line, which gets replaced when the stack goes back up.
If the loose brick ends a few courses down, a partial rebuild or new mortar may be all it takes. Then that is the price you get. Chimney repair in Ocean County
How a chimney rebuild works in Ocean County
How long it takes depends on how far down the stack has to come. All seven steps are on the chimney rebuilding page.
Free inspection
We get up to the top when it is safe to and photograph the brick, crown, cap, flue and flashing. You see how far the damage goes before we talk about price.
Written estimate
How far down we expect to go, what goes back up and the price, on paper. Any permit goes on it too.
Down to solid masonry
We take the chimney apart brick by brick until we reach solid masonry. With the stack open, we check the liner and the framing and show you what we find.
Build it back and clean up
New brick and mortar go up course by course, with a new crown, cap and flashing. Then we haul the old brick away and go over the photos with you.
Do you need a permit for a chimney rebuild in Ocean County?
It depends on your town. Rebuilding a chimney 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. In Beach Haven's historic district, even replacing the roof on a one- or two-family house needs a certificate of appropriateness first. 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 Ocean County, yes. We cover all 33 municipalities, from Barnegat to Tuckerton. Put your ZIP code in the estimate form and we confirm it when we call you back.
The construction office in your town decides. A rebuild is on neither of New Jersey's lists of ordinary maintenance or minor work. We call the town before we start and put any permit on the estimate. In Beach Haven's historic district, even replacing the roof on a one- or two-family house needs a certificate of appropriateness first. If your house is there, we ask the borough about the chimney too.
Not necessarily. If nothing uses the flue, there are other options, from rebuilding just the top to capping it. A chimney that vents nothing still takes rain and wind, so a split crown still lets water in. We go over each option and what it costs.
It can. Oil exhaust is part of what wears out the top of a flue, so with the stack open we look at the liner before the brick goes back up. If it is cracked, the estimate says so.
It depends on how tall the chimney is, how far down it has to come, and whether the liner or the wood around it needs work. We do not quote over the phone. The price is written up after we have been to the top and seen where the sound brick starts.
Find out where the sound brick starts
Tell us your town and what the chimney looks like from the yard. We call you back shortly, inspect it for free, and give you photos and a written price. If a repair will last, that is what we write up.
Or call 732-682-9251