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.
Fast, Reliable Chimney Sweep Across Highlands
Most chimney sweeps in Highlands run between $189 and $349, and a standard sweep plus Level 1 inspection typically takes 60 to 90 minutes. If you live in Highlands, TX, you’re dealing with a specific set of chimney problems: older brick ranch homes, expansive clay soil that shifts foundations, and river humidity that works its way into flue systems. Our crews know the neighborhoods along North Main Street, the streets off Wallisville Road, and the homes tucked near the San Jacinto River. Call (903) 961-6496 and you’ll talk to a live person who can schedule a sweep at a time that works for you.
Why Ashby Chimney Houston Is Highlands’s Preferred Chimney Sweep Company
Ashby Chimney Sweep has been cleaning and repairing chimneys since 2002, and our Highlands customers tend to call us after something went wrong with another company. A tech who never showed. A price that doubled at the door. A liner repair that cracked again six weeks later. Nathan Corliss runs our operation with a simple approach: written price before any work starts, written guarantee on every repair, and a free second visit if a covered repair fails inside the guarantee period. That’s the Chimney Sweep team’s 365-Day Done Right Promise, and it’s why homeowners in Highlands keep our number.
We answer the phone 24/7. No voicemail loops, no callback forms. When you call about a chimney in Highlands, a live person picks up and schedules a background-checked, uniformed technician to arrive in a real arrival window – not a four-hour gap. Our techs know what they’re looking at when they see a 1960s brick ranch with a clay-tile flue, because they’ve seen hundreds of them around Highlands and the surrounding communities along the San Jacinto River.
Styles & brands we work with
Chimney Sweep Certified in Highlands
Chimney Sweep Certified in Highlands means we don’t just run a brush up the flue and call it done. It means a full cleaning of the firebox, smoke chamber, damper, and flue, followed by a Level 1 inspection that documents everything in writing with photos. Every sweep includes camera footage of the flue interior so you see exactly what we see. Nothing gets recommended without visual evidence you can review yourself.
What a Highlands Sweep Actually Involves
We remove creosote, soot, and debris from the entire system, then inspect the flue liner (the clay or steel tube that vents combustion gases out of your home), the damper, and the chimney cap. In Highlands, where many homes have original clay-tile flues from the 1950s through 1980s, our techs pay close attention to tile alignment and mortar joints. The expansive clay soil here shifts with seasonal moisture, and that movement shows up in flue cracks long before it shows up in your drywall.
What It Costs
A standard chimney sweep in Highlands runs $189 to $289 for a single-story home with a wood-burning fireplace. Two-story homes or those with steep roof pitches typically run $249 to $349. If you haven’t had a sweep in years and there’s heavy creosote buildup, the job may take longer, and we’ll tell you that before we start. Every price is written down before any work begins – the number on the invoice matches the number we quoted at the door.
Gas Fireplace Cleaning in Highlands
Gas Fireplace Cleaning in Highlands is often overlooked because homeowners assume gas means no cleaning. That’s not true. Gas fireplaces accumulate dust, pet hair, soot, and mineral deposits on the glass, logs, and burner ports. In Highlands, where the hot, humid summers mean your gas fireplace sits unused for months, dust and moisture combine into a film that can clog burner ports and cause delayed ignition. A gas fireplace cleaning here runs $149 to $249 and includes glass cleaning, log and burner inspection, and verification that the unit is venting correctly.
Prefab Metal Chimneys Need Attention Too
Many 1970s and 1980s homes in Highlands have prefab metal chimneys, not masonry ones. These systems have specific clearance requirements and rust concerns, especially in our humid climate. A Level 2 camera inspection is the only way to know whether a prefab chimney is safe to use. We use Chim-Scan cameras to document the interior condition of every chimney we service, metal or masonry. If the camera shows clean metal and intact joints, we’ll tell you that plainly. We don’t sell liners based on age or guesswork.
Trusted Brands We Service in Highlands
When a Highlands chimney needs repair, we install materials from manufacturers we trust: DuraFlex stainless steel liners, HeatShield resurfacing products, and Copperfield chimney components. These aren’t whatever happened to be in the van. They’re industry-standard materials chosen because they hold up to the specific conditions we see around Highlands – river humidity, acidic clay soil, and the sooty residue that drifts from nearby petrochemical operations. We keep common parts stocked locally so most repairs can be scheduled within days of the initial inspection, not weeks.
See the difference
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After
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AfterCommon Chimney Sweep Problems We See in Highlands Homes
- Cracked clay flue tiles from foundation movement. Highlands sits on expansive clay soil that swells and shrinks with rain and drought. That movement transfers into chimneys and cracks flue tiles – a problem we see far more often here than in Houston’s concrete-slab subdivisions. A camera inspection confirms whether those cracks are superficial or dangerous.
- Third-degree creosote glaze in seldom-used fireplaces. Homeowners who only burn a fire a few times each winter still produce creosote. When it sits in a humid flue through a long, damp offseason, it condenses into a hard, shiny glaze that brushes can’t remove. This is a chimney fire risk, and it requires chemical treatment or mechanical removal, not just a standard sweep.
- Water intrusion through DIY caps or failed flashing. Improperly installed chimney caps and old flashing let humid river air and rain into the flue. Over years, that moisture spalls older brick and rusts dampers open or shut. We regularly see rusted dampers in Highlands homes that have never had a proper cap installed.
- Spalling brick on exterior masonry. The wet-dry cycles in Highlands’ climate cause older brick to absorb moisture, then flake and crumble. Combined with sooty deposits from the Ship Channel area, exterior masonry here needs more frequent inspection and occasional tuckpointing than you’d expect for its age.
Pricing for Chimney Sweep in Highlands, TX
Here’s what you can expect to pay for chimney work in Highlands. A standard chimney sweep runs $189 to $289 for a single-story masonry fireplace. Gas fireplace cleaning runs $149 to $249. A Level 1 inspection is included with every sweep and typically runs $129 to $189 on its own. A Level 2 camera inspection – which we strongly recommend for any Highlands home with a clay-tile flue and foundation movement – runs $249 to $399. Flue repairs with HeatShield or a stainless DuraFlex liner start around $800 and depend entirely on what the camera shows us. We give you a written price before any work starts, always. Call (903) 961-6496 for a free estimate.
We Also Serve Cities Near Highlands
Our crews serve Highlands and the surrounding communities, including Pasadena, Houston, Webster, and Friendswood. If you’re just over the city line, call us anyway – dispatch is coordinated from our Houston office, so we can usually route a technician to your area quickly. Visit our Highlands page for the full scope of what we do in this specific service area.
Serving Highlands, TX - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Highlands 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 Sweep in Highlands
Highlands sits on expansive clay soil that expands when wet and contracts when dry, and this seasonal movement puts pressure on chimney foundations that concrete-slab subdivisions don’t experience. Over decades, that movement cracks clay flue tiles and shifts chimney structure. This is a known local condition, and it’s why we recommend camera inspection for any Highlands home with an original clay-tile flue. If you’re seeing cracked tiles, call (903) 961-6496 and we’ll show you the footage before recommending any repair.
Once a year, even if you only burn a few fires. That’s not upselling – it’s about our climate. In Highlands, the humid offseason causes creosote to absorb moisture and glaze over. What starts as a light, brushable deposit hardens into third-degree creosote that a standard sweep can’t remove. An annual sweep keeps the deposits light and brushable, and it’s far cheaper than the chemical treatment or flue repair that glazed creosote can require.
Yes, they can. Airborne particulates from nearby industrial activity settle on exterior masonry and combine with Houston-area humidity to form a dark, slightly oily film. This doesn’t affect the flue interior, but it does accelerate the appearance of spalling and can stain brick. We clean exterior masonry as part of a Level 1 inspection, and we’ll point out whether the discoloration is cosmetic or a sign of moisture damage.
Yes, especially if it’s been years since the last inspection. Prefab metal chimneys in Highlands face rust from river humidity, and their internal components can degrade without any visible sign from the outside. A Level 2 camera inspection shows us whether the flue is intact, whether joints are separated, and whether the system is still safe to use. The cost runs $249 to $399, and we’ll give you the camera footage so you can see the condition for yourself.
Third-degree creosote is a hard, shiny glaze that forms when creosote absorbs moisture and hardens over multiple heating cycles – a common problem in Highlands’ humid climate where fireplaces sit unused for months. A standard chimney brush cannot remove it. It requires chemical treatment or mechanical removal with specialized tools. Left alone, it’s a chimney fire risk. If you suspect glazed creosote, call (903) 961-6496 for an inspection, and we’ll show you the camera evidence before recommending any treatment.
Written by Nathan Corliss, Owner at Ashby Chimney Houston, serving Highlands since 2002.
Ready to schedule? Call (903) 961-6496 for a free estimate. A live person answers 24/7, and you’ll get a written price before any work begins.