Level 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.
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AfterFast, Reliable Chimney Inspection Across Allentown
A standard chimney inspection in Allentown runs $129 – $289 for a Level 1 visual check, and $249 – $549 for a Level 2 camera inspection, which is the one most older Allentown homes actually need. We schedule most inspections within 3 – 5 business days, and our crews know the row home blocks off Hamilton Street as well as the split-levels up toward Trexler Park. If you’re wondering whether the flue behind that century-old brick is actually lined, or if the freeze-thaw cycle did a number on your crown this winter, call us at (336) 863-3889 and we’ll walk you through what you’re looking at.
Why Alcott Chimney Sweep Is Allentown’s Preferred Chimney Inspection Company
Allentown homeowners deal with a very specific kind of chimney problem, and we’ve spent years learning its contours. The brick row homes in the Old Allentown Historic District and the West End were built for coal, converted to oil, then converted again to gas, and the flues inside them often never got touched during any of those transitions. That matters because an inspection here isn’t a formality. It’s the difference between a flue that vents properly and one that’s been quietly spilling combustion gases into your living space for a decade.
Every technician we send into an Allentown home is background-checked and identity-verified under the Threshold Standard. You’ll get the technician’s name and photo before the visit, and they’ll show a photo ID badge at your door. No unannounced contractors, no anonymous vans. Ruben Castellano built Alcott Chimney Sweep around the idea that you should know exactly who’s walking into your house before the doorbell rings.
We’ve been doing this since 2002, and the reason our Allentown customers keep calling us back is simple: we don’t recommend work without camera footage they can see with their own eyes. When a sweep tells you the flue is unlined and needs a full reline, you should be able to watch the video that proves it. Ours do.
Fireplace Inspection in Allentown
Fireplace Inspection in Allentown means looking at more than the firebox. On these older homes, the real story is usually in the smoke chamber, the flue, and the crown, places a visual glance will miss. If your fireplace has been burning wood all winter, or if you just bought a row home off Chew Street and have no idea what’s behind the wall, a fireplace inspection tells you whether that fireplace is safe to use or just decorative at this point.
A fireplace inspection for an Allentown home typically runs $129 – $329 depending on whether we’re doing a visual check or running a camera up the flue. That price includes a written report and photos.
What the Camera Shows
In Allentown’s 1880s – 1930s housing stock, the camera often finds things the naked eye can’t: missing mortar joints between flue tiles, a smoke chamber that was never parged, or an oversized flue that condenses flue gases instead of venting them. We show you the footage as we go, because you should see exactly what we’re seeing.
When the Fireplace Hasn’t Been Used in Years
If the home sat empty or the fireplace went unused for a decade, you need an inspection before the first fire. Animals, failed dampers, and crumbled crowns are common in Allentown row homes, and none of them improve with age.
Chimney Inspection Services in Allentown
Chimney Inspection Services in Allentown cover the full stack: flue liner condition, smoke chamber integrity, crown and cap condition, masonry joints, and clearances to combustibles. For homes in the West End Theater District and surrounding blocks, we also check the exterior brick and mortar as part of the inspection, because the Lehigh Valley’s freeze-thaw cycling works on exposed masonry all winter.
Level 2 camera inspections are $249 – $549 for most Allentown homes, and they’re the standard we recommend for any chimney that’s been through a fuel conversion or hasn’t been inspected in the last five years.
Level 1, Level 2, and When Each Applies
A Level 1 inspection is a visual check of the readily accessible parts of the chimney and appliance. It’s appropriate when nothing has changed since the last inspection. A Level 2 adds camera scanning of the flue interior and is what you need when a home changes hands, after a chimney fire, or when a fuel conversion has happened. Level 3, which involves opening walls, is rare but sometimes necessary on heavily damaged stacks.
Real Estate and Pre-Purchase Inspections
If you’re buying a home in the Old Allentown Historic District or anywhere in the 18101 – 18104 ZIPs, a Level 2 camera inspection before closing is cheap insurance against discovering an unlined flue after you own it. We document everything with photos and provide a written report you can take to the seller.
What happens when you call
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A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
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You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
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A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
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You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Trusted Brands We Service in Allentown
When repairs are needed, we install and service professional trade materials, not box-store substitutes: HeatShield resurfacing for deteriorated smoke chambers, Olympia Chimney caps and dampers, Gelco chimney covers, and Famco termination caps. We keep the sizing and part availability for Allentown’s older flue dimensions in mind when we’re on site, which means less waiting when a crown needs replacing or a damper fails. You’ll know which brand is going in before we start the work, and it’ll be written on the price.
Common Chimney Inspection Problems We See in Allentown Homes
- Unlined, oversized flues venting gas appliances. These chimneys were sized for coal stoves, and a modern gas furnace venting into a 7×7 or larger clay-tile flue cools the exhaust too quickly, creating condensation that eats mortar and a downdraft that pushes gases back into the home. This is the single most common finding in Allentown row homes built before 1930.
- Freeze-thaw spalling on exposed brick crowns. Allentown winters hammer chimney crowns. Water gets into the masonry, freezes, and pops the surface off in sheets. By March and April, we routinely find crowns with missing mortar and cracked wash, which lets water run into the flue and accelerate the deterioration.
- Third-degree creosote glaze hiding in smoke chambers. It looks like black glass, and a brush won’t remove it. This is what accumulates when flues are oversized and exhaust cools too fast, which is exactly what Allentown’s coal-conversion chimneys do. It’s also a fire waiting to happen if left alone.
- No record of fuel conversion relining. On many blocks off Hamilton and Linden Streets, homeowners simply don’t know whether a liner was ever installed when the house converted from coal to oil or gas. The only way to answer that question is a camera. We’ve found unlined flues on homes that had been cleaned for years without anyone noticing.
Pricing for Chimney Inspection in Allentown, PA
A Level 1 visual inspection in Allentown runs $129 – $289. A Level 2 camera inspection runs $249 – $549, and the higher end generally reflects taller chimneys, harder access, or multiple flues. A Level 3 inspection, when it’s warranted, starts around $650 and is rare. The price you’re quoted is the price you pay; it’s written down before any work starts, and it doesn’t change at the end of the job.
What affects cost: the number of flues, roof pitch, whether we need ladder access above three stories (common on Allentown row homes), and whether we’re also doing a sweep in the same visit. Call (336) 863-3889 for an exact quote. Estimates are free, and you’ll get a number you can actually plan around.
We Also Serve Cities Near Allentown
Our Chimney Inspection team covers Allentown and the surrounding Lehigh Valley and Upper Bucks communities from our local dispatch. If you’re in Quakertown, Sellersville, Perkasie, or Telford, we’re scheduling inspections there too, with the same name-and-photo technician preview and the same written pricing. Learn more about our work across the region on our Allentown page.
Serving Allentown, PA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Allentown 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 Allentown
Because if your home was built between the 1880s and 1930s and converted from coal to oil to gas, the flue may be unlined or oversized for the appliance now venting into it, and you won’t know that without a camera. Sweeping an unlined flue without knowing its condition can send debris into living spaces or fail to remove third-degree creosote glaze that only chemical treatments and mechanical removal can address. Call (336) 863-3889 and we’ll schedule the inspection and sweep together.
A Level 1 inspection is a visual check of what’s accessible without special tools, and a Level 2 adds a camera scan of the full flue interior. For a pre-1930 Allentown home that’s been through fuel conversions, a Level 2 is what we recommend, because the things that go wrong here, like missing mortar joints, oversized flue sizing, and hidden creosote, are not visible from the firebox. A Level 2 typically runs $249 – $549 in Allentown. Call us for a written quote.
Yes. Venting a gas appliance into an unlined or improperly sized flue violates current mechanical and fuel gas codes, and it’s one of the most common issues we document in Allentown’s older housing stock. The fix is usually a properly sized stainless steel liner installed to meet the appliance’s BTU output. We’ll show you the camera footage that confirms the problem before we quote the reline, and the repair is covered by our written guarantee. Call (336) 863-3889 for an appointment.
Freeze-thaw cycling spalls brick crowns and cracks mortar joints over the winter, so a spring inspection in Allentown often finds crown damage and joint deterioration that wouldn’t have been visible in the fall. This is the ideal time to catch moisture intrusion before it works deeper into the masonry and flue system. We schedule spring camera inspections throughout March and April, and we’ll show you exactly what the winter did to your chimney.
Third-degree creosote, the hard, tar-like glaze that forms in oversized flues, can often be removed with professional-grade chemical treatments and mechanical rotary tools without replacing the liner. Whether the flue itself is salvageable depends on what the camera shows: missing tiles, cracked mortar, or a flue sized wrong for the appliance may require a liner upgrade instead. We’ll show you the footage and recommend the least expensive fix that actually works. Call (336) 863-3889 and we’ll put it on the schedule.
Written by Ruben Castellano, Owner at Alcott Chimney Sweep, serving Allentown, PA since 2002.