Chimney Sweep Bros sweeps, inspects, relines and repairs chimneys across Palos Heights. We are insured, based nearby in Orland Park, and open seven days a week from 7:00am to 7:00pm. Call (708) 432-3430.
City services and permit information are available from the City of Palos Heights.
What Palos Heights chimneys are like
Palos Heights is a mature, largely residential city, and the housing stock is dominated by solid post-war and mid-century brick homes on generous wooded lots. Those homes almost all have real masonry chimneys with clay tile liners — which is good news structurally and bad news at a certain age. Clay tile liners do not fail dramatically; the mortar joints between the tiles simply wash out over decades until there are gaps, and a gap in the liner is a direct path for heat and carbon monoxide into the wall cavity.
The tree cover is not a neutral detail
Palos Heights sits in one of the most heavily wooded parts of Cook County — the Lake Katherine Nature Center on Lake Katherine Drive alone runs to 158 acres of woodland, prairie, wetland and the Cal-Sag Canal frontage, with Navajo Creek and a waterfall running through it. That kind of tree cover is lovely to live in and hard on a chimney, for two specific reasons.
- Leaf and debris fall. An uncapped flue under mature trees fills up. We pull genuinely surprising quantities of leaf litter and twigs out of open flues here, and a packed flue is a blockage, which means smoke and carbon monoxide come back into the room rather than going up.
- Animals. Heavy tree cover means squirrels and raccoons, and an uncapped chimney is an ideal nesting site — warm, sheltered and vertical. A nest is a complete blockage.
Which is why, in this city more than most, a chimney cap is not an optional accessory. It is the cheapest part of the chimney and it prevents the most common problem in the area.
Chimney services we provide in Palos Heights
- Chimney sweeping — under a sealed HEPA vacuum, with a Level 1 inspection included.
- Chimney inspection — Level 1 and Level 2 with a camera up the flue.
- Chimney repair and masonry — spalling brick, failed mortar, tuckpointing, rebuilds.
- Chimney relining — stainless liners sized to the appliance.
- Caps and crowns — stopping the water before it does the damage.
- Gas fireplace service — the flue still matters, because carbon monoxide does.
- Dryer vent cleaning — the full duct run, not just the reachable part.
Damp and the wooded lot
The other thing heavy shade does is keep masonry damp. A chimney that never gets a proper day of sun stays wet longer after rain, and wet masonry going through our freeze-thaw cycle spalls faster. If your chimney is on the shaded side of a wooded lot in Palos Heights and the brick faces are starting to flake, that is not coincidence — and the fix starts with keeping the water out at the top. See chimney repair.
Frequently asked questions
Do I really need a chimney cap in Palos Heights?
More than most places, yes. This is one of the most heavily wooded areas in Cook County, and an uncapped flue under mature trees collects leaf litter, twigs and animal nests. All of those are blockages, and a blocked flue pushes smoke and carbon monoxide back into the room.
Something is living in my chimney. Can you get it out?
Yes, and then cap the flue so it does not happen again. Heavy tree cover means squirrels and raccoons, and an open chimney is an ideal nesting site. A nest is a total blockage — do not light a fire to try to drive them out.
Why is the brick on my chimney flaking?
Water plus freeze-thaw. On a shaded, wooded lot the masonry stays damp longer after rain, so it goes into each freeze wetter than it would in the open. The water almost always enters through a cracked crown or a missing cap, so that is where a real repair starts.
My house is 1960s brick. What is the likely issue?
The mortar joints between the clay flue tiles. They do not fail dramatically, they just wash out over decades until there are gaps — and a gap in the liner lets heat and carbon monoxide into the wall cavity. It is only visible with a camera.
How much is a chimney sweep in Palos Heights?
A sweep with a Level 1 inspection starts at $179, and the price is confirmed before we start. The full list is on our pricing page.
Do you charge travel to Palos Heights?
No. There is no travel surcharge — we are based just over in Orland Park.
Can you sweep a chimney that has not been used in years?
Yes, and it is worth doing before you light it. An unused chimney is not a safe chimney, it is an unknown one — disused flues are where we most often find nests, collapsed liners, and crowns that have been letting water in for years.
Do you work weekends in Palos Heights?
Yes. Seven days a week, 7:00am to 7:00pm, at the same rate as a weekday.
Book a chimney sweep in Palos Heights
Call (708) 432-3430 — open seven days, 7:00am to 7:00pm — or book online. Prices are on our pricing page and confirmed before work begins.
From our blog: Chimney Inspection Levels 1, 2 and 3, Explained Plainly
Also from our blog: How often should a chimney really be swept?
From our blog: Stainless Steel vs Clay Tile Chimney Liners: Which to Choose