Chimney services in Edgewood
If a wood stove is your main heat, a chimney sweep and inspection before the heating season is the core of the list below.
- Chimney Sweeping & CleaningCreosote, soot and debris cleared from the flue, smoke chamber and firebox, with before-and-after photos and a plain account of what the cleaning turned up.
- Chimney InspectionA close look at the flue, firebox, masonry and roof flashing, with photos you keep and a plain account of what’s urgent, what can wait and what can be left alone.
- Chimney Cap InstallationChimney caps measured to your flue, single or multi-flue, to help keep rain, animals, debris and embers out, with the crown checked before anything is fitted.
- Gas Fireplace Service & RepairService and repair for gas fireplaces and gas inserts: pilot and ignition trouble, sooty glass, odd flames, odors, and the vent or chimney the unit uses.
- Chimney RepairCrowns, caps, flashing, mortar joints, spalled brick and damaged flue liners, traced to the cause and quoted in a written scope before any work begins.
- Chimney Leak & Flashing RepairTracing where water really gets in around your chimney, then repairing the flashing, crown, cap or masonry responsible, with a written scope before any work.
Heating with wood in Edgewood
About 1 in 30 Edgewood homes heat mainly with wood, by Census estimates — a small share, but roughly four times Puyallup’s. A stove that heats a house all winter burns far more wood than a fireplace lit on holidays, so its flue can collect creosote faster. The EPA’s Burn Wise program passes on fire officials’ advice to have a wood-burning appliance, chimney and vent professionally inspected every year.
Edgewood lies within the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency’s Tacoma–Pierce County Smoke Reduction Zone, whose eastern boundary runs along the city’s east side, so an uncertified stove or insert may not be used here. If wood really is your only adequate heat, the agency’s “no other adequate source of heat” exemption has to be applied for and approved before you burn during a ban; without it, Stage 1 stops uncertified stoves and fireplaces and Stage 2 stops all wood and pellet burning.
Mostly detached houses from the 1980s on
Edgewood’s median year built is 1995, according to Census estimates, with close to half of homes built in 2000 or later and a little under 4 in 10 before 1980. About 7 in 10 are single-family detached houses.
That mix can mean a masonry chimney or a factory-built system with a metal flue. Either one needs sweeping if it carries a wood stove, and a sound chimney cap keeps rain and animals out of both.
Permits in Edgewood
Permits come from the City of Edgewood’s Building and Fire Prevention group, part of Community and Economic Development, which reviews, issues and inspects building permits. Applications go through the Edgewood Permit Portal, and the Front Counter answers questions at (253) 952-3299.
The City’s mechanical fixture worksheet lists both a gas fireplace and a wood fireplace among the equipment counted on a mechanical or building permit when it is new, relocated or replaced, and its over-the-counter permit sheet lists residential mechanical appliances among projects that may qualify for counter review. The same worksheet notes that electrical alterations need Department of Labor & Industries inspection and approval. Whether your chimney or fireplace work needs a permit is the City’s call.
What you can tell us about
You do not need to know the cause. These are things homeowners describe when they get in touch — each one is something to assess on site, not a diagnosis.
Water where it should not be
Drips in the firebox, stains on a ceiling or wall beside the chimney, or a damp smell after rain.
Leak & flashing repairLoose mortar or damaged brick
Crumbling joints, brick faces flaking off, or bits of masonry on the roof or in the gutter.
Masonry repairA missing or damaged cap
No cap on the flue, a bent or rusted one, or signs that birds or animals have been getting in.
Cap installationSmoke or draft trouble
Smoke rolling into the room, a fire that is hard to keep going, or odors when the fireplace is not in use.
Chimney inspectionBuildup and a sweep that is overdue
You cannot remember the last cleaning, or you have bought a house and do not know the chimney's history.
Chimney sweepingA gas fireplace that will not light
A pilot that will not stay lit, ignition trouble, or soot on the glass. If you smell gas, leave the house and call 911 or your gas utility from outside.
Gas fireplace service
How a visit works
- 1Send the short form or call. Say what you have noticed; photos you took are welcome when we talk.
- 2We arrange a time with you, look at the chimney, and photograph what we find.
- 3You hear plainly what is urgent, what can wait, and what does not need doing.
- 4Repair work comes with a written scope and price. Nothing starts until you approve it.
- 5We photograph the finished work from the same angles, and the photos are yours to keep.
What affects the price
Prices come after the chimney has been seen, in writing. These are the things that move them:
- Condition
- What the inspection finds, and whether the cause of the damage is still active.
- Access
- Roof pitch, height, how many stories up the chimney sits, and whether staging is needed.
- Chimney size
- Height above the roof, width, and how many flues the stack carries.
- Materials
- Brick and mortar matched to what is there, crown and cap materials, liner type.
- Scope
- One targeted repair, several at once, or rebuilding part of the stack.
- Permits
- Whether the work needs a permit from the city or county that has jurisdiction at the address.
Edgewood chimney questions
Does putting in a wood stove or gas fireplace in Edgewood need a permit?
The City’s mechanical fixture worksheet counts both wood and gas fireplaces as equipment on a mechanical or building permit when they are new, relocated or replaced. Check with the Front Counter at (253) 952-3299 how your project should be filed.
Wood is our main heat. What happens during a burn ban?
Unless you already hold an approved “no other adequate source of heat” exemption from the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency, a Stage 1 ban stops fireplaces and uncertified stoves, and a Stage 2 ban stops all wood and pellet burning. The exemption has to be approved before you burn during a ban, so apply ahead of the heating season.
How often should a wood stove chimney be swept?
It depends on how much and what you burn, so the practical answer comes from inspecting it. Fire officials, via the EPA, recommend a professional inspection every year, and a stove used as the main heat source can need sweeping more often than one used occasionally.
Is my old wood stove still legal in Edgewood?
Only if it is EPA- or Oregon-certified, or your household has the approved exemption, because Edgewood is inside the Smoke Reduction Zone. Look for a certification label on the back or side, and mention the stove when you request an estimate.
Useful local links
- Building and Fire Prevention — City of Edgewood (opens in a new tab)
- Apply for a Permit — City of Edgewood (opens in a new tab)
- No Other Adequate Source of Heat exemption — Puget Sound Clean Air Agency (opens in a new tab)
- Tacoma-Pierce County Wood Stove Rule — Puget Sound Clean Air Agency (opens in a new tab)
- Census profile: Edgewood, WA — U.S. Census Bureau data via Census Reporter (opens in a new tab)