Arbor Heights, King County
Masonry work on an Arbor Heights chimney starts at $475. That covers a defined job such as repointing the joints on one face of the stack or recasting a small crown. Larger areas, a full crown on a wide chimney or a run of spalled brick down several courses, are priced by the area we measure on site. We match the new mortar to the strength and color of the old as closely as the brick allows, because mortar harder than the brick around it makes the brick crack instead of the joint.
Typical investment
From $475
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$99 plus tax, deducted when you approve the repair
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Pick what you're seeing at your Arbor Heights home — we'll point you to the right fix.
What we do
The same crew, the same written quote — for Arbor Heights homes.
Level 1 examination of everything reachable, with a Level 2 camera pass when the reachable parts leave a question open
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Full-height brushing of the flue with a head sized to its shape and material
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Assessment of the stack from roofline to crown, with a photo of each defect
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Camera survey and measurement of the existing flue before anything is ordered
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Measurement of each flue tile, or of the whole crown for a multi-flue cap
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Burner, pilot assembly and firebox cleaned; logs or media put back in the layout the manual shows
Learn moreRanges shown for orientation — the exact figure is written up on-site, after the inspection.
Rain is the main enemy of chimney brick in this corner of the city, and it arrives in volume. The Western Regional Climate Center's long-term record nearest to West Seattle shows 38.29 inches in an average year; November contributes 6.11 of them, July barely three-quarters of one. Brick and mortar soak up a share of that water every wet week. Arbor Heights is no wetter than the rest of the peninsula, but its stacks have had a long time to absorb it.
Every masonry repair (crown / repointing) we do in Arbor Heights includes:
Smoke coming back into the room, or a smell that won't go? Book the inspection first.
Book nowMoisture trapped in a joint expands into ice after dark, levering that joint a hair wider. The face of a soft brick can pop off in flakes, a defect masons call spalling. A crown cast thin or without an overhang sends rainwater straight down the brick below it. Expect all three to be worst on whichever face meets the southerly storms, and worse up at the top courses than down by the roofline.
We go face by face and note which joints, bricks and crown sections need work, so the quote reflects the actual area.
Crumbling joints are ground or chiseled back to an even depth; a ruined brick is coaxed out carefully so the ones beside it stay put.
Fresh mortar goes in a lift at a time, then gets a concave tooled finish that sheds rain; replacement brick is chosen to match size and color as closely as stock allows.
We cover fresh masonry against rain until it cures, and we photograph the finished faces for your file.
Arbor Heights School grew in step with the houses around it, HistoryLink records: four rooms opened in April 1949, then additions in 1950, 1953 and 1958. Chimneys raised on the hill during that run are now around seventy years old. Mortar from that era was not made to last forever, and a joint that has held for seven decades may have only a few years left.
The weather record explains why. At the long-term station nearest West Seattle, January, December and February together bring about 25 nights a year when the low reaches 32°F or less, out of an annual average of 33. Every one of those nights works on any water left in the brick from the rain of the days before. Repointing before a joint opens fully is far cheaper than relaying brick after it has let go.
What this work is quoted at for Arbor Heights homes — the exact figure comes from the $99 on-site inspection, credited toward the work.
| Service | Price in Arbor Heights | What that covers |
|---|---|---|
| Masonry Repair (Crown / Repointing) | From $475 | Crown work, repointing and tuckpointing by surface area |
| Chimney Sweep | $189–$449 | Full flue swept, Level 1 inspection included |
| Chimney Inspection | $99 plus tax | Level 1 visual; Level 2 adds a full camera scan |
| Chimney Relining | From $1,900 | Full-length stainless liner, sized to the appliance |
| Chimney Repair | From $425 | Masonry repair — brick and mortar, scoped after diagnosis |
Ranges are what these jobs are quoted at in Arbor Heights. The exact figure is set on site after a $99 inspection (credited toward the job if you go ahead), and you approve it before any work starts.
Arbor Heights is the southernmost part of West Seattle, south of SW Roxbury Street, annexed to Seattle in 1954, with mostly detached houses, about half of those in its ZIP code area built between 1940 and 1969. We work every part of it — Arroyo Heights, Seola Beach included.
Arbor HeightsKing County, WA · 47.509, -122.378
Before and after
Illustrations of what each repair changes on a typical chimney — not photos of a specific job.
Before
After
Before
After
Before
After
Four steps, each one on paper — so you always know what happens next.
Choose a genuine opening on the crew's calendar. Confirmation is immediate.
Liner, crown, cap, flashing and masonry examined in order — each finding photographed.
One document, plain numbers, covering only the work your chimney genuinely needs.
The repair is completed, then handed over with before-and-after photos of every item.
Mortar has to set while the air stays above 32°F and the rain stays off it. We schedule around the forecast and cover the work if a shower arrives.
No. The 2021 Seattle Residential Code lists chimney repointing among the jobs that need no building permit, as long as the building envelope is left unchanged.
Often a look from the roof is enough. When it is not, our camera inspection costs $99 plus tax, an amount we credit back against masonry work you approve.
A $99 on-site inspection, a written quote before any work, and photos of every item we touch.
