Brick chimney in escrow: do these five things
Start step one
Send the address and your role in the sale, and we will tell you the next step.
Five things to have ready
Go down the list in order.
- Step 1: the street address and a phone number for access
- Step 2: tell us if the fireplace burns wood, gas or neither
- Step 3: pass along any chimney note from the home inspector
- Step 4: decide who reads the report: agent, buyer, seller
- Step 5: say how we reach the attic, crawlspace and roof
Step six is ours: look at the brick, then the flue
A Level 1 inspection is a visual check of the reachable parts of the chimney. It costs $55. For a brick stack, that means the crown, the mortar joints we can see, and the firebox.
A Level 2 does the same and adds a video scan along the whole flue. Where we can enter the attic, crawlspace or roof, we look there too. It costs $395.
Why a sale asks for the second level
NFPA 211 is the standard that sets the levels. It puts a Level 2 on the list when the house sells, and again after a flue fire, after a quake, or after a switch to a different fuel.
A brick chimney can look sound from the roof and still have cracked flue tile inside. The camera is how you find out.
What you hold at the end
You get a written report and photos on inspection day. They go to whoever you name. If a repair is needed, the report says which item comes first and which can wait.
What a buyer asks for, and what a seller agrees to, is for them and their agents. We do not give contract advice.
The two inspection prices
Pick the step that fits the sale.
- Level 1 chimney check
- $55
- Level 2 chimney inspection
- $395
Masonry or other repairs are priced after the inspection.
Questions before the visit
Do I need to be home?
Someone who can let us in is enough. Tell us who in step one.
Will you fix what you find?
We can quote the repair. The inspection and the repair are separate, and the price comes after the inspection.
When will the report reach us?
On the day of the inspection, with photos.
Give us step one
Send the address and access details. We handle the rest and deliver the report and photos on inspection day.
Call (818) 671-0728