The chimney cap is the small piece of hardware that protects everything beneath it, and a flue left open at the top is an invitation to every problem a chimney can have. Rain falls straight down it onto the damper and the smoke shelf, animals climb or fly in and nest, and embers can drift out onto the roof. Ashaway Chimney Care fits chimney caps across Mount Laurel, NJ in stainless steel and copper, sized to your flue, anchored against the wind, and fitted with spark-arrestor mesh, so the top of your chimney is sealed against weather and wildlife while the smoke still vents freely.
- Stainless steel and copper caps that last
- Sized and fitted to your specific flue
- Spark-arrestor mesh to hold embers in
- Mesh sized to keep birds and animals out
- Anchored to hold through a South Jersey storm
- Free measure-up and a straight written price
Everything an open flue lets in
An uncapped flue is open to the sky, and that single fact is behind a surprising share of the chimney trouble we are called out for. Rain and snow fall directly down the opening, settling on the smoke shelf and the damper where the standing moisture rusts metal components solid and soaks into the masonry from the inside. Over a few seasons an uncapped chimney can take in enough water to corrode the damper, deteriorate the mortar joints in the smoke chamber, and stain the firebox, all from a problem that a cap would have stopped at the top.
Then there is the wildlife. A warm, sheltered flue is exactly the kind of cavity birds, squirrels, and raccoons look for, and an open chimney is an open door. A nest built in the flue is both a blockage that can push smoke and carbon monoxide back into the house and a serious fire risk, since the dry material sits directly in the path of the heat. Animals that get in and cannot get out die in the flue and create a different problem again. A properly screened cap closes the chimney to all of it while still letting the smoke out, which is why it is one of the highest-value pieces of hardware on the whole structure.
Fitting a cap that actually stays put and works
A chimney cap only does its job if it is the right cap, sized to the flue and built to last in the weather it has to face. We measure your flue rather than guessing, because a cap that is too small restricts the draft and one that is loosely fitted comes off in the first real storm. We install caps in stainless steel and copper, materials that stand up to years of rain and freeze without rusting through the way cheaper galvanized caps do, and we anchor them securely so a coastal wind cannot lift them free. The spark-arrestor mesh is sized with care, fine enough to hold embers in and keep birds and animals out, but open enough that the smoke vents without choking the draft.
The fit matters as much as the material. A cap mounted square and tight, with no gaps for wind-driven rain to slip past, keeps the flue dry and the draft clean, while a poorly fitted one creates new problems even as it solves the obvious one. We also use the moment we are on the roof to look over the crown and flashing around the cap, since a chimney that needed a cap has often gone without other top-end maintenance too. The result is a sealed, properly drawing chimney top that you can stop thinking about, which is exactly what a cap is supposed to deliver.
A small investment that prevents a large one
Of all the work a chimney can need, a cap ranks among the best values precisely because of everything it heads off. The cost of fitting a quality cap is a fraction of what it takes to free a rusted damper, clear and disinfect a flue full of nesting material, or repair the water damage that an open chimney quietly causes over a few wet seasons. A cap is quiet insurance for the entire structure beneath it, and on a Mount Laurel chimney exposed to the full run of a South Jersey year, that protection earns its place quickly.
We will measure the flue at no charge and tell you exactly what your chimney needs, with an honest price in writing. If your chimney is uncapped, or the cap you have is rusted, undersized, or has lost its mesh, the fix is usually a straightforward one, and it is among the easiest ways to add years of safe service to the whole chimney. Where a cap is all you need, a cap is all we will recommend.
How your chimney needs connect
A chimney is a system, so chimney cap installation rarely stands alone, it connects to chimney sweeping service, chimney camera scan, chimney leak repair, chimney relining, tuckpointing, and our crew handles all of it under one roof. We bring the same service to Chimney Cap Installation in Moorestown, Chimney Cap Installation in Marlton, Chimney Cap Installation in Maple Shade, Chimney Cap Installation in Cherry Hill and everywhere else across the Mount Laurel area.
If you searched for a chimney sweep near Mount Laurel, you have reached a local crew, call 551-351-9744 any time. For background, read Creosote and Chimney Fires: What Every Mount Laurel, NJ Homeowner Should Know on our blog, or head back to our Mount Laurel home page to see everything we do.