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.
Fast, Reliable Chimney Inspection Across Selma
A chimney inspection in Selma typically runs $189 – $449 depending on the level, and most inspections take 60 – 90 minutes from driveway to report. We serve every part of Selma including the neighborhoods off Floral Avenue, Rose Avenue, and around Selma High School, and we schedule within a window that works for you, not the other way around. If you’ve been putting off an inspection because you’re not sure what it involves or what it’ll cost, call (336) 863-3889 and we’ll walk you through the three levels before you book anything.
Why Alcott Chimney Sweep Is Selma’s Preferred Chimney Inspection Company
Homeowners in Selma call us because we show our work. Before we recommend anything, you see the camera footage yourself. That matters in a town where the housing stock was built between the 1950s and 1980s, and a lot of what we find in those older chimneys never would have been caught without a camera. Families here have told us they’d been told by other companies they needed thousands in repairs, and when we ran our own inspection, the flue was fine. Ruben Castellano built this company on that exact principle: prove it first, quote second.
Every technician who comes to your door in Selma is background-checked and identity-verified through the Threshold Standard. You’ll get their name and photo before we arrive, and they’ll show a photo ID badge at the door. No exceptions. Our 365-Day Done Right Promise means if a repair we complete fails within a year, the second visit is free. Written price before work begins, written guarantee on every repair. That’s not an upsell. That’s how we’ve done it since 2002.
We coordinate Selma dispatch through our San Antonio office, but the crews working in Selma know the local building patterns: 1950s ranch homes with original masonry fireplaces, clay-tile liners pushing 60 or 70 years old, and chimney caps missing from decades of valley wind and sun. A Chimney Inspection from our team is built around what those chimneys actually need, not what a national franchise checklist says.
Chimney Fire in Selma
Chimney fire risk in Selma is shaped by a burn pattern most people don’t think about until we explain it. The San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District’s Smoke Management Program prohibits wood-burning on many of the coldest winter nights. So your Selma fireplace sits cold and damp through long Tule fog stretches, then takes concentrated heavy use on the nights burning is permitted. That feast-or-famine cycle builds creosote faster than steady, regular burning would, because each cold start with a hot, fast fire deposits more of the tar-like residue that fuels chimney fires.
What a Selma Chimney Fire Inspection Covers
When we check for chimney fire risk in Selma, we look for glazed creosote, which burns at temperatures your flue liner was never designed to handle. We inspect the smoke chamber, the flue, and the firebox, and we run a camera when glaze is suspected. A Level 1 inspection with creosote assessment runs $189 – $249 in Selma.
When Selma Homeowners Should Call
If you’re burning on every permitted day, schedule an inspection before the season starts. If you’ve never had the flue camera-inspected in a home built before 1990, that’s the strongest reason to call. The inspection itself costs less than a cord of seasoned oak. Call (336) 863-3889.
Level 2 Chimney Inspection in Selma
A Level 2 Chimney Inspection in Selma is what we recommend for older homes, real estate transactions, and any chimney that’s been through a chimney fire or a storm that moved the cap. It includes everything in a Level 1 plus a full video scan of the flue interior, and it’s how we catch cracked clay-tile liners and hidden mortar failure in Selma’s mid-century tract homes. Expect to pay $349 – $449 in this market.
Real Estate Inspections Selma Buyers Actually Need
If you’re buying or selling a home in Selma, the standard home inspection does not put a camera in your chimney. We do. We’ve inspected homes off McCall Avenue and Rosa Lee Lane where the flue looked fine from the firebox but was cracked ten feet up where nobody had ever looked. A Level 2 before closing costs a few hundred dollars and gives you negotiable evidence.
After a Chimney Fire or Cap Damage
If you think you’ve had a chimney fire in your Selma home, a Level 2 is not optional. Flue liner cracks from thermal shock are invisible from the outside and dangerous at any burn rate. We’ll show you the video, and if it’s clear, we’ll tell you it’s clear. No invented repairs.
Trusted Brands We Service in Selma
We install and service professional trade materials you won’t find at a big-box store: DuraFlex liner systems, HeatShield resurfacing, Olympia Chimney, Famco, and Copperfield. For Selma homeowners, that means if your clay-tile liner is cracked, we can often resurface it with HeatShield instead of rebuilding the chimney. If you need a new cap to keep raisin-dust out of the firebox, we carry proper fitted caps sized for the original flue dimensions of Selma’s older homes, and most of the time we have what we need on the truck when we arrive.
Common Chimney Inspection Problems We See in Selma Homes
- Raisin dust and vineyard debris in uncapped fireboxes. Late summer and fall harvest around Selma kicks up fine agricultural dust that settles into any uncapped chimney. Homeowners call us because there’s debris in the firebox before they’ve burned a single log, and they’re right to wonder.
- Cracked clay-tile flue liners in 1950s – 1980s homes. The original liners in Selma’s tract housing were not engineered for the hot, intermittent burns that SJVAPCD burn-day restrictions force on today’s users. Cracks go unnoticed until the first heavy burn day, and by then the damage is done.
- Tule fog moisture decay in dormant flues. From November through February, dense fog pushes ground-level moisture into cold, unused flues during no-burn stretches. Mortar joints soften, chimney crowns spall, and the damage sits hidden until someone finally looks.
- Chimney caps missing or rusted through. Selma’s long dry summers and fog-damp winters are hard on metal caps. A missing cap lets in rain, birds, and harvest dust. We check the cap on every inspection and replace it before it becomes a liner problem.
Pricing for Chimney Inspection in Selma, TX
A Level 1 chimney inspection in Selma runs $189 – $249. A Level 2 with full camera scan runs $349 – $449. A Level 3, which involves opening a wall or chimney structure to access concealed areas, starts at $799 and is quoted case by case. What moves the price on a Level 2 is access and flue length, not mystery fees. Our estimate is written before any work starts. If a repair is recommended, you’ll see the camera footage that justifies it before you see a repair price. Estimates are free. Call (336) 863-3889 and we’ll give you an exact number for your home.
We Also Serve Cities Near Selma
Our crews regularly work in Selma and we extend to nearby metros including Houston, San Antonio, Dallas, and Fort Worth. If you own property in one of those cities or are moving between them, our Chimney Inspection standards travel with you: same written pricing, same camera-before-quote rule, same background-checked technicians.
Serving Selma, TX - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Selma 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 Selma
Because Selma’s burn pattern is feast-or-famine under the SJVAPCD Smoke Management Program, we recommend inspecting annually before the first permitted burn of the season. Cold, damp flues followed by concentrated hot burns create more creosote and more thermal stress than steady burning, so an annual inspection is the safe minimum here.
A Level 1 is a visual check of the accessible parts of the chimney and costs $189 – $249. A Level 2 adds a full camera scan of the flue interior and costs $349 – $449. For most Selma homes built before 1990, we recommend a Level 2 because that’s the only way to see liner cracks and hidden mortar failure. Call us at (336) 863-3889 to talk through your home.
In Selma, that debris is typically fine agricultural dust from nearby raisin vineyards and drying yards. It settles into uncapped or poorly capped chimneys during late summer and fall harvest. It means the cap is missing or failed, and it can mask early signs of liner damage. We check the cap on every inspection and can fit a new one before the first burn day.
Third-degree creosote looks like a shiny, tar-like glaze on the flue wall and it’s the most dangerous form. It often appears in Selma chimneys after seasons of intermittent high-heat burning. It is not removable by brushing alone; professional chemical or mechanical treatment is required. If we find it on camera, we’ll show you exactly where and how much, then quote removal with a written price before starting.
Yes, in many cases. For Selma’s mid-century homes with aging clay-tile liners, we often use HeatShield resurfacing or a DuraFlex stainless liner system instead of tearing down the chimney. The right option depends on the crack pattern and flue dimensions, which we show you on camera before recommending anything. A full rebuild is the last option, not the first recommendation. Call (336) 863-3889 for an inspection.
Written by Ruben Castellano, Owner at our Chimney Sweep in Selma, serving Selma and surrounding communities since 2002.





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