Chimney Inspection
Level 1 and Level 2 chimney inspections are needed at different stages of owning a home.
When to Schedule an Inspection
To stay safe, follow these simple rules so you know when to book a Level 1 or Level 2 inspection. The Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA) recommends a Level 1 inspection when your appliance and venting have not changed and you plan to keep using them the same way. In short, it is the basic yearly check for a system in regular use.
What We Check in a Level 1
During a Level 1 Safety Inspection, our technicians look at the parts of the chimney that are easy to reach, inside and out. Also, we make sure the structure and flue are sound. In addition, we check that there are no blockages or unsafe deposits. As a result, you get a clear read on safety and day-to-day performance.
Related Chimney Services
- Air Duct Service
- Chimney Leak Repairs
- Masonry Repairs
- Liner Installation
- Cap Installation
- Damper Repair/Replacement
When a Level 2 Is Required
A Level 2 Safety Inspection is needed when you make changes to the chimney, the fireplace, or the venting. For example, a new fuel type, a different appliance, a new flue material or shape, or a change in BTU input or efficiency all call for Level 2. Also, a Level 2 is required when you sell or transfer a property so the current condition is recorded.
Events That Trigger Level 2
- Fireplace or appliance problems
- A building fire or a chimney fire
- Earth movement or strong storms
- Any damage that may have stressed the system
So, after any of these events, schedule the proper inspection to prevent further damage and to confirm safe operation.
What We Do During a Level 2
During a Level 2, we perform a visual check and a video scan of the flue. In addition, we review joints, liners, and internal parts that you cannot see from the outside. As a result, you get clear notes, photos, and next steps, so you can decide what to do with confidence.
Proudly Serving Chicago’s North Shore
With years of experience and thousands of satisfied customers, our team continues to deliver exceptional chimney care across the North Shore. We’re dedicated to protecting your home year-round while expanding our reach to new towns every season. Our growing team ensures prompt, reliable service—wherever you are.
Core Service Areas
Specifically, we proudly serve Evanston, Wilmette, Kenilworth, Winnetka, Glencoe, Highland Park, Highwood, Lake Forest, Lake Bluff, Deerfield, Riverwoods, Bannockburn, Northfield, Northbrook.
Extended Service Areas
We also cover Arlington Heights, Barrington, Buffalo Grove, Des Plaines, Glenview, Hawthorn Woods, & Fort Sheridan.
Therefore, no matter where you live in the North Shore, Chimney Monkey is ready to help. In addition, our team ensures quick response in all listed areas. Likewise, we adapt to local needs for safer results.
📞 Call Chimney Monkey at (847) 994-4388 and let us take care of your chimney needs!
What a Chimney Inspection Costs
A standard chimney inspection with Chimney Monkey is $205. That is the price for a Level 1 inspection and for a utility inspection of a furnace or water heater flue. You get a written report with photographs of what we found, and if we recommend work, the report explains why.
We do not use the inspection as a sales pitch. If the chimney is sound, the report says so and you are done. If it is not, you get documentation you can use to get comparison quotes, file an insurance claim, or negotiate a real estate contract.
A Level 2 inspection is $295, and additional flues on the same chimney are discounted, so a two- or three-flue chimney does not cost two or three times as much. A Level 2 adds a video scan of the flue interior and is the level required when a home changes hands. Our full price list is on the chimney repair cost page.
Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3: Which One Do You Need?
The industry recognizes three inspection levels, and the difference is how much of the system gets examined and how far we go to see it.
A Level 1 inspection is the annual checkup. We examine the readily accessible portions of the chimney exterior and interior, the accessible portions of the appliance and connection, and verify the flue is free of obstruction and combustible deposits. This is the right inspection when you are using the same appliance the same way you did last year and nothing has changed.
In practice we go further than the Level 1 definition requires. Most of the time, after we sweep a chimney, we also run the camera up the clean flue, because a freshly swept flue is the only time you can really see the tile joints, the parging and the smoke chamber. That look is included in the sweep and in our Level 1 price, and it is where we catch most of the problems we end up reporting. What a Level 2 adds is the formal, documented version of that survey, which is what a real estate transaction, an insurance claim or a fuel change needs on paper. We also perform Level 3 inspections when the only way to answer the question is to open up part of the chimney or the wall around it.
A Level 2 inspection includes everything in a Level 1 plus accessible portions of attics, crawl spaces, and basements, and a video scan of the interior of the flue. A Level 2 is required when you buy or sell a home, when you change the fuel type or the appliance, after a chimney fire, and after an earthquake, severe storm, or any event that could have damaged the structure.
A Level 3 inspection is invasive. It involves removing components of the chimney or the building — a chase cover, a crown, a section of wall — to reach a concealed area we have reason to believe is damaged. Level 3 inspections are uncommon and are only recommended when a Level 2 turns up something that cannot be evaluated any other way.
Buying or Selling a Home? You Need a Level 2
General home inspectors are not chimney specialists, and most home inspection reports say some version of “fireplace present, further evaluation recommended.” That line is not a pass. A masonry chimney is one of the more expensive components on a house to repair, and the damage that matters — a cracked flue liner, a failed smoke chamber, a deteriorated crown — is usually invisible from the room.
A Level 2 inspection with a video scan tells a buyer what they are actually buying and gives a seller a document that heads off a late-stage renegotiation. We turn reports around quickly because we know real estate timelines do not wait, and we work directly with agents throughout the Chicago area.
What We Actually Look At
An inspection is a systematic walk through the whole system, not a glance up the flue. On the exterior we look at the cap and chase cover, the crown, the top course of masonry, the mortar joints, the flashing where the chimney meets the roof, and whether the structure is plumb. On the interior we look at the firebox, the damper and its operation, the smoke chamber and smoke shelf, the throat, and the condition and thickness of creosote deposits.
Inside the flue we are looking for cracked or missing tiles, gaps in the mortar joints between tiles, spalling, blockages, animal nests, and evidence of a past chimney fire. On appliance connections we check that the vent is properly sized, correctly pitched, and adequately supported, and that clearances to combustibles are maintained. We check draft, and on gas appliances we look for signs of spillage.
How Often Should a Chimney Be Inspected?
Annually, regardless of how much you use the fireplace. The recommendation catches people off guard because they assume an unused chimney cannot cause problems, but the most common failures we find have nothing to do with burning. Water is the primary destroyer of chimneys in this climate, and a chimney deteriorates through freeze-thaw cycles whether or not anyone lights a fire.
Beyond the annual schedule, get an inspection after you buy the home, before you change appliances or fuel, after any chimney fire however minor it seemed, after a significant storm or roof work, and any time you notice smoke entering the room, a persistent odor, water stains near the chimney, or falling debris in the firebox.
Inspection and Sweeping Are Not the Same Thing
People often book one meaning the other. A chimney sweep removes creosote, soot, and debris from the flue. An inspection evaluates the condition and safety of the system. They are complementary and are frequently done in the same visit — a flue often has to be swept before it can be properly inspected, because deposits hide the tile joints underneath.
If you are booking for the first time, or you have not had the chimney looked at in several years, ask for both. If we sweep and inspect in the same visit we will tell you up front how that affects the price.
Furnace and Water Heater Flue Inspections
The flue serving your furnace or water heater matters as much as the fireplace flue and gets checked far less often. Modern high-efficiency furnaces produce cooler, wetter exhaust than the appliances many Chicago-area chimneys were built for, and that acidic condensate eats clay tile and mortar from the inside. When an old chimney serves a new furnace, the flue is frequently oversized as well, which slows the exhaust and makes condensation worse.
A utility inspection is $205 and covers the flue, the connector, sizing, and draft. Where we find a deteriorated or oversized flue, the fix is usually a properly sized stainless steel liner.
Carbon Monoxide, Draft, and Why This Is a Safety Issue
The reason inspections exist is that the failure modes are invisible. A cracked flue liner lets combustion gases into the wall cavity and from there into the living space. A blocked flue pushes them straight back into the room. Neither has a smell you can rely on, because carbon monoxide does not have one.
Watch for headaches or flu-like symptoms that improve when you leave the house, soot or staining around an appliance, a pilot light that keeps going out, excessive condensation on windows near the appliance, or smoke that rolls back into the room. Any of those warrants an inspection promptly. Working CO detectors on every level of the home are not optional.
Certified Inspectors, Written Reports, Photographs
Our inspectors are trained and certified, insured, and background-checked, and every inspection produces a written report with photographs and, on a Level 2, video of the flue interior. You get the report whether or not you hire us for any recommended work, and we are happy to walk you through it on the phone.
What we find often connects to work covered elsewhere on this site: crown repair, cap and chase cover replacement, tuckpointing, masonry repair, leak repair, obstruction removal, and full rebuilds.
Where We Inspect Chimneys
We inspect chimneys throughout Chicago and the north, northwest, and western suburbs, including Buffalo Grove, Deerfield, Northbrook, Glenview, Winnetka, Wilmette, Kenilworth, Glencoe, Highland Park, Lake Forest, Lake Bluff, Evanston, Skokie, Northfield, Barrington, Arlington Heights, Palatine, Elmhurst, Oak Brook, and Naperville. Our shop is at 741 Hastings Dr, Buffalo Grove, IL 60089.
To book, call 847-994-4388 or request an appointment online. Real estate transactions get scheduling priority.
Chimney Inspection FAQs
How much does a chimney inspection cost?
A standard Level 1 chimney inspection is $205, and a utility inspection of a furnace or water heater flue is also $205. A Level 2 inspection, which includes a video scan of the flue, is $295, with a discount for each additional flue on the same chimney.
How long does a chimney inspection take?
A Level 1 inspection typically takes about an hour. A Level 2 with a video scan takes longer, usually an hour and a half to two hours depending on how many flues the chimney has.
Do I need a Level 2 inspection to buy a house?
Yes. A Level 2 inspection is the recognized standard at the sale or transfer of a property, and it is the only level that includes a video scan of the flue interior.
Does my chimney need an inspection if I never use the fireplace?
Yes. Most of the deterioration we find is caused by water and freeze-thaw cycling, not by burning. An unused chimney still ages, and an unused flue is more likely to have an animal nest or an obstruction in it.
Do you inspect gas fireplaces?
Yes. Gas appliances need the same attention to venting, draft, and clearances, and we check the burner, pilot assembly, and safety circuit at the same time.
Will I get a written report?
Yes. Every inspection comes with a written report and photographs, and Level 2 inspections include video of the flue interior. The report is yours regardless of whether you hire us for any repairs.
Can you inspect and sweep in the same visit?
Usually, yes, and often we have to — creosote and soot conceal the tile joints, so a heavily loaded flue needs sweeping before it can be properly evaluated.
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