Chimney Sweep in Palatine, IL

Chimney Sweep and Repair in Palatine, IL

Palatine spans an older village center and a very large amount of subdivision and townhome building from the 1970s onward. Which of those you live in decides what your chimney appointment actually involves. Call 847-994-4388 or book online. We serve the 60067 and 60074 zip code and the surrounding communities, including Arlington Heights, Rolling Meadows, Inverness, Barrington and Deer Park.

Factory-Built Fireplaces and Chase Covers

Most of the newer housing here has a factory-built fireplace with a metal chimney running up through a framed chase. Those are listed assemblies with a service life rather than an indefinite one. Refractory panels crack, pipe sections work loose at the couplers inside the chase, dampers stop closing, and the chase cover rusts through at the seams.

Builder-grade chase covers were usually galvanized steel, and galvanized steel in this climate rusts from the seams outward. Once it perforates, water runs down the outside of the chimney pipe into the chase framing, rotting plywood and soaking insulation for years before anything shows up inside the house. Rust streaks down the siding are the diagnosis showing itself from the driveway. A stainless cover with a cross break and proper overhang solves it permanently.

Older Palatine and the Utility Flue

In the older village sections the chimney is masonry, and it was usually sized for a mid-century furnace and a water heater venting together. Once a high-efficiency furnace was installed and vented out a side wall, the water heater was left venting alone into a flue far too large for it. The exhaust cools, condenses, and the moisture works on the liner and mortar joints from the inside.

We inspect the utility flue at the same rate as a fireplace. It is the condition homeowners are least likely to know about and the one with the most direct safety consequence, because appliance exhaust carries carbon monoxide.

Townhomes and Associations

Palatine has a great deal of attached housing, and shared or adjacent flues raise questions a single-family inspection does not: which unit owns which flue, whether the chase is common element, and how repairs get coordinated across an association. We work with property managers and boards, and we can schedule a building in one visit with individual reports per unit rather than sending residents to book one at a time.

What We Repair and Maintain in Palatine

• Level 1 and Level 2 chimney inspections — a documented condition report on the flue, firebox and chimney exterior, with photographs.
• Prefabricated fireplace service — refractory panels, dampers, chimney sections and couplers on factory-built units.
• Chase cover and chimney cap replacement — stainless covers with a cross break and proper overhang.
• Water heater and furnace chimney liners — correctly sized stainless liners for appliance flues.
• Chimney cleaning and sweeping — creosote removal and draft correction on wood-burning fireplaces and stoves.
• Chimney relining — for cracked, offset or missing clay tile.
• Brick and mortar repair and tuckpointing — repointing joints before water gets behind the brick.
• Crown repair and replacement — with a drip edge, so water leaves the chimney instead of soaking into it.
• Gas fireplace and gas log service — valves, log sets, ignition and venting, by NFI-certified technicians.
• Chimney leak repair — finding the actual entry point before anything gets sealed.
• Chimney caps and spark arrestors — stock, custom and multi-flue caps sized to the flue.
• Dryer vent cleaning — including long and rooftop runs.

Areas We Cover

All of Palatine, including downtown and the blocks near the train, the subdivisions north of Dundee Road, the townhome developments off Rand and Hicks, and the areas bordering Arlington Heights, Rolling Meadows, Inverness and Deer Park.

Why Our Inspections Are Paid

We charge for inspections because the inspection is the service: we document what is actually happening with photographs and, where conditions allow, a camera survey of the flue, then explain what is urgent, what is maintenance and what can reasonably wait. A free estimate prices a known job. A diagnostic inspection determines what the job actually is. The report is yours whether or not we do the repair.

Who You Are Hiring

Chimney Monkey has been in business since 2017 and works out of Buffalo Grove. We are members and sponsors of the National Chimney Sweep Guild — our partner Brett Conklin serves on the NCSG board as an at-large director through 2027 — and we belong to the regional North Central Chimney Guild. Our technicians are NFI certified across wood-burning, gas and pellet appliances, we have SPRAT-certified technicians for rope-access work, and our crew trains through the year. One of our three partners is a U.S. military veteran. More than 1,100 Google reviews.

Palatine Chimney Questions

There are rust streaks on the siding next to my chimney chase. Is that serious?

It means the chase cover is failing and water is getting into the chase. It is not an emergency today, but it damages framing and insulation you cannot see. A stainless cover with a cross break and proper overhang solves it permanently.

My fireplace is from the 1980s. Is it too old to use?

Not automatically. Age matters less than condition. We have inspected plenty of original units that are still sound and plenty that are not. The inspection determines which, and if a system is at the end of its life we will say so rather than sell another patch.

Can you inspect all the units in our association at once?

Yes. We schedule the building in one visit and provide separate documentation for each unit, and we flag common-element conditions specifically so the board knows what belongs to whom.

How much does a chimney sweep cost in Palatine, IL?

A chimney sweep runs $300 to $350 and includes the Level 1 inspection. An inspection on its own is $200 to $300, and the same range covers a utility chimney serving a furnace or water heater. A Level 2 inspection with a camera survey of the flue is around $300. Typical rates as of September 2026.

Do you charge for the inspection?

Yes. You are paying for a documented answer: photographs, a camera survey of the flue where conditions allow, and a written explanation of what needs correcting now versus what can wait. That report is yours whether or not we do the repair.

Our Prices

Typical rates as of September 2026. Prices change, so call 847-994-4388 to confirm current pricing. A chimney sweep runs $300–$350 and includes the Level 1 inspection. An inspection on its own is $200–$300, and the same range covers a utility chimney serving a furnace or water heater. A Level 2 inspection with a camera survey of the flue is around $300. Fireplace liners are sized per flue, and most complete jobs land between $3,000 and $4,000; a utility flue liner for a furnace or water heater typically runs $3,000–$3,800. Chase covers, factory-built system work, relining and masonry repairs are quoted in writing after the inspection, because pricing an unknown condition is guessing. Call 847-994-4388 to book or to confirm current pricing.