Sweep & inspection
Caps & crowns
Flue relining
Masonry repair
Gas fireplace serviceLevel 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.
Chimney Company in Santa Monica, CA
Chimney repair in Santa Monica usually means restoring a 1920s-to-1960s masonry stack that has spent decades in salt air and marine-layer damp. Most of the fireplaces we work on here sit in Spanish-revival and California bungalow homes where the flue is original clay tile and the exterior mortar has started to spall. Ashwood Chimney Sweep has served Santa Monica since 2012, and we handle cleaning, repair, and dryer vent work as one crew, so you’re not juggling three contractors when a single inspection turns up multiple problems. Call (833) 805-3229 for a straight answer and a free estimate.
Why Santa Monica Homes Are Different
Santa Monica’s chimney problems are coastal problems first and fire-safety problems second. The marine layer keeps masonry damp for months at a time, and the onshore salt air works into brick and stucco the way it works into a car’s undercarriage: slowly, then all at once. We routinely find stacks in Ocean Park and the Pico-adjacent flats where the exterior mortar has been eaten back half an inch and the clay flue inside is original, unlined, and cracking in places no one has looked at since the house was built.
The housing stock matters too. The flats south of Montana and west of Lincoln are dense with 1920s-1930s bungalows and Mediterranean courtyard properties. Many of those original fireplaces have never been relined. The 90402 neighborhoods north of Montana have larger Spanish-revival homes where stucco-clad stacks hide aging spark arrestors and corroded dampers. And in the mid-century condos, the “fireplace” is often a gas insert inside a shell that was never designed for it. None of this is visible from the street. It shows up when someone finally gets on the roof, or when a home inspection flags it during a sale.
The damp also changes what builds up inside the flue. In a dry inland climate you get hard, glassy creosote glaze after years of hot fires. In Santa Monica you get that same glaze breaking down in standing moisture, plus mildew, plus nests from birds and rodents that find a warm, quiet flue a few blocks from the ocean. Low fire use means the problems compound unseen.
Styles & brands we work with
Our Main Santa Monica Services
Most Santa Monica homeowners call us for one of two reasons: an annual chimney sweep and inspection, or a dryer vent that has gone too long without cleaning. Both are ventilation systems, both are fire-risk systems, and we treat them with the same seriousness.
Chimney Sweep in Santa Monica
A proper sweep here means more than brushing the flue. We inspect the crown, the flashing, the damper, and the spark arrestor, because in Santa Monica those components corrode faster than the flue gets dirty. Salt air and marine damp eat through crowns and flashing on ocean-side stacks, and an inspection that skips the roof finds none of it. If you haven’t had the chimney looked at since you bought the house, start with a sweep and a full visual inspection. You can read the full scope on our Chimney Sweep in Santa Monica page.
Dryer Vent Cleaning in Santa Monica
Your dryer vent is a fire-risk system, not an afterthought. Lint plus the higher humidity near the coast clogs vents faster than homeowners expect, and a clogged vent makes the dryer run hotter and longer. In older Santa Monica homes, the vent runs are often long, twisted, or made of old flex hose that traps lint at every bend. We clean the full run and check the termination. The full scope is on our Dryer Vent Cleaning in Santa Monica page.
What happens when you call
- 1
A real person answersNo phone trees — you reach a local pro.
- 2
You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
- 3
A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
- 4
You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Chimney Repair in Santa Monica
Chimney repair in Santa Monica is often a masonry restoration job hiding behind a simple complaint: water staining on the ceiling, a musty smell from the fireplace, or a home inspection report that calls out spalling brick and a cracked flue. The coast accelerates everything. Vintage clay flues in 1920s-1940s bungalows crack under decades of thermal stress, and once salt moisture reaches those cracks, the liner starts flaking and dropping debris into the smoke chamber. Our repair work uses professional-trade materials from Olympia Chimney, Famco, Copperfield, and DuraFlex, and we can often reline or restore a flue without full demolition. If you’re looking at a red-flag inspection report, our Chimney Repair overview explains the full repair scope we handle.
Chimney Cap Installation
Signs you need it
Water dripping into the firebox, rust stains on the damper, or evidence of birds or rodents in the flue mean there’s no cap, or the existing cap has failed.
What it costs in Santa Monica
Chimney cap installation in Santa Monica typically runs $145 to $350 depending on the flue size and cap material.
How we do it
We measure the flue, select a stainless or copper cap from our stocked inventory, secure it to the crown, and check the spark arrestor mesh for proper airflow.
Chimney Cap Replacement
Signs you need it
A rusted-through cap, missing spark arrestor mesh, or a cap that’s blown off the stack in a coastal storm needs replacement, not repair.
What it costs in Santa Monica
Replacing a corroded chimney cap in Santa Monica usually falls between $145 and $350, same range as new installation.
How we do it
We remove the old cap, inspect the crown underneath for damage, and install a new cap sized correctly for the flue and the marine environment.
Chimney Liner Installation
Signs you need it
Crumbling clay tile, flue gases leaking into the home, or an inspection report that calls out gaps, cracks, or missing liner sections.
What it costs in Santa Monica
Chimney liner installation in Santa Monica typically runs $3,440 to $8,100 depending on flue height, access, and whether we use a DuraFlex stainless system.
How we do it
We size the liner to the flue and appliance, run a DuraFlex flexible stainless liner down the full height, insulate as needed, and reconnect the appliance correctly.
Chimney Flashing Repair
Signs you need it
Water stains on the ceiling near the chimney, damp drywall around the stack, or visible gaps in the metal at the roofline.
What it costs in Santa Monica
Chimney flashing repair in Santa Monica commonly runs $580 to $1,400 depending on the roof pitch and how much flashing needs replacement.
How we do it
We remove the old flashing, cut and fit new copper or galvanized step flashing, seal the joints, and test for water entry before we leave the roof.
Chimney Crown Repair
Signs you need it
Cracked, spalled, or missing crown mortar lets water straight down the outside of the flue and into the smoke chamber.
What it costs in Santa Monica
Crown repair or resurfacing in Santa Monica ranges from $580 to $1,400 depending on crown size and whether we’re patching or recasting.
How we do it
We clean the crown surface, fill cracks with a flexible crown sealant, and recast badly deteriorated crowns with the proper overhang and slope.
What Chimney Repair Costs in Santa Monica
| Item | Typical range in Santa Monica |
|---|---|
| Chimney cap installation or replacement | $145 – $350 |
| Chimney flashing repair | $580 – $1,400 |
| Chimney crown repair | $580 – $1,400 |
| Chimney liner installation (DuraFlex) | $3,440 – $8,100 |
Does chimney repair take long in Santa Monica?
Cap and crown work is usually done in one visit. Liner installation with a rebuild can take two to three days depending on the flue layout and whether the old clay needs to be broken out first.
Can you repair an original clay flue, or do I need relining?
Sometimes we can restore the existing liner with HeatShield, which lets us repair cracked or spalled flue surfaces without full replacement. If the damage is structural, a DuraFlex stainless liner is the lasting fix.
Brands We Service in Santa Monica
We repair with the same materials professional contractors specify. In Santa Monica we install DuraFlex flexible liner systems and caps and dampers sourced from Olympia Chimney and Copperfield, stocked locally so we’re not waiting on a parts box from out of state. HeatShield liner restoration is available for flues that can be saved. See our brands for the full lineup, including Famco ventilation hardware for dryer vent work.
See the difference
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After
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After
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AfterPricing for Chimney Company in Santa Monica, CA
| Service | Typical range in Santa Monica |
|---|---|
| Chimney sweep and inspection | $189 – $350 |
| Dryer vent cleaning | $120 – $240 |
| Chimney cap installation | $145 – $350 |
| Chimney cap replacement | $145 – $350 |
| Chimney crown repair | $580 – $1,400 |
| Chimney flashing repair | $580 – $1,400 |
| Chimney liner installation | $3,440 – $8,100 |
| Masonry repair and repointing | $580 – $2,800 |
Salt air and marine damp push repair prices in Santa Monica toward the higher end of those ranges more often than inland jobs, because corroded flashing and spalled crowns frequently need full replacement rather than patching. We quote a flat price before any work begins, and you’ll never get a surprise line item after the fact.
Neighborhoods We Serve in Santa Monica
We work throughout Santa Monica and the immediate coastal strip, including the 90401, 90402, 90404, and 90405 ZIP codes. Whether you’re in a 1920s bungalow near Ocean Park or a Spanish-revival home north of Montana, we know what to look for on these older stacks.
- Ocean Park
- Sunset Park
- North of Montana (90402)
- Pico-adjacent flats (90404 / 90405)
- Mid-City Santa Monica
We schedule Santa Monica work by week, not by hour, and coastal-side homes with ocean exposure get the same careful roof inspection as inland blocks.
Service Area – Cities Near Santa Monica
We also serve the neighboring communities where older housing stock and coastal air create similar chimney conditions. If you’re in Venice, CA, Century City, CA, Culver City, CA, or Beverly Hills, CA, the same crew and the same replacement materials are available for your flue and vent work.
Serving Santa Monica, CA — Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Santa Monica 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 Company in Santa Monica
We group Santa Monica calls by neighborhood and schedule within a week for most non-emergency work. If your inspection report is holding up a sale, tell us the closing date and we’ll prioritize accordingly.
Most chimney sweeps, cap replacements, and liner installations that don’t alter the structure don’t require a permit. When masonry rebuilds or structural repairs need city approval, we’ll tell you exactly what’s required and what we handle.
Yes. If you need a chimney sweep and a dryer vent cleaning, or a sweep plus a cap replacement, one call books the combined visit and one crew handles all of it. Call (833) 805-3229 for a free estimate on the full scope.
What happens when you call
- 1A real person answersNo phone trees — talk to a local chimney cleaning pro.
- 2You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched. No surprises.
- 3We come out and measureLicensed & insured, at a time that suits you — the visit and the quote are both free.
- 4You get the price in writingLine-itemed, yours to keep, and nothing starts until you say go.
What Santa Monica Customers Say
"Liner was cracked in two places. He walked me through the repair options honestly, including the one that was cheaper for him and better for me."
— Marcy Vaughn"Good work. The written inspection report took about a week to arrive after I asked for it, which was slower than I expected."
— Nadia Hassan"Drop cloths everywhere, HEPA vac, and not a speck of soot on the carpet. I'd been dreading the mess for nothing."
— Lina Aziz