Chimney services in Fife
- 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.
- 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 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 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.
- 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 RebuildingTaking a failed chimney down to sound masonry and building it back up, above the roofline or further down, with the stopping point named in a written scope.
Newer homes, many of them attached
Fife’s median year built is 2000, according to Census estimates, and only about 1 in 5 homes predates 1980. About 4 in 10 are single-family detached houses; the rest are attached, multifamily or other housing types. Electricity is the main heating fuel in roughly 7 in 10 homes.
In an attached home or a condominium, the chimney, vent termination or roof penetration may be shared or managed by an association. Check who is responsible before booking work, and bring the association’s rules into the plan. For a detached house, the usual starting point is an inspection or, for a gas unit, gas fireplace service.
Seismic Design Category E
The City of Fife’s published design criteria place the city in Seismic Design Category E under the 2021 International Building Code. Seismic design category is one of the factors the building code uses to set how masonry must be reinforced and anchored.
If a masonry chimney needs rebuilding rather than repair, ask the City’s Building staff early what the new work has to meet.
Permits in Fife
The City of Fife’s Community Development Department issues permits for all development within city limits. Permitting is paperless: applications go through the City’s online permit portal, where the options include a mechanical permit and a building permit for altering an existing single-family house. The Permit Coordinator (253-896-8632) or comdev@fifewa.gov can help you pick the right one.
Electrical permits in Fife are issued and inspected through Tacoma Power (253-502-8277), not the City. Whether your chimney or fireplace work needs a permit is for the City to decide; ask before it starts.
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.
Fife chimney questions
Who issues permits for fireplace or chimney work in Fife?
The City’s Community Development Department, through its online permit portal. It offers a mechanical permit and a building permit for alterations to an existing house; the Permit Coordinator can say which fits your job.
Who handles the electrical permit for a fireplace in Fife?
Tacoma Power issues and inspects electrical permits in Fife, according to the City. Building and mechanical permits stay with the City. If you smell gas at any point, leave the house and call 911 or your gas utility from outside.
I live in a townhome. Can I arrange chimney work myself?
Possibly, but check your association’s rules first: in attached housing the chimney or vent can be common property. Once you know who is responsible, request an estimate and mention the association so the scope can reflect it.
Does the Tacoma–Pierce County wood stove rule apply in Fife?
Yes. Fife lies inside the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency’s Smoke Reduction Zone on the agency’s map, so only EPA- or Oregon-certified wood stoves and inserts may be used unless the household has an approved “no other adequate source of heat” exemption. Greater Pierce County burn bans apply as well.
Useful local links
- Permitting — City of Fife Community Development (opens in a new tab)
- Community Development — City of Fife (opens in a new tab)
- Climatic & Geographic Design Criteria — City of Fife (opens in a new tab)
- Tacoma-Pierce County Wood Stove Rule — Puget Sound Clean Air Agency (opens in a new tab)
- Census profile: Fife, WA — U.S. Census Bureau data via Census Reporter (opens in a new tab)