Chimney services in Redmond
Whether the house has a gas insert, a factory-built fireplace in a framed chase or an original brick chimney, an inspection shows which of these services actually applies.
- 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 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.
- 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 Crown RepairSealing, resurfacing or recasting the slab on top of your chimney, with a real overhang, a drip edge and a flexible joint around the flue.
Newer homes on average, older ones where owners live
Census estimates (American Community Survey, 2024 five-year) put the median Redmond home’s construction year at 1993, about a decade newer than Bellevue’s. Around 40 percent of homes were built in 2000 or later, about a quarter before 1980, and only about 2.5 percent before 1960.
Those totals include a lot of apartments: only about 36 percent of Redmond homes are single-family detached houses, and about 43 percent are owner-occupied. The City’s adopted housing element, drawing on an earlier Census release, puts the median for owner-occupied homes at 1980, against 1994 for rentals. A typical owner-occupied house, in other words, has a chimney that has been through more than 40 wet winters.
The two ends of that range call for different checks. Newer houses often have factory-built fireplaces or gas units vented through metal pipe, sometimes inside a framed, sided chase; the metal cover over a chase can rust, and water can get in where the chase meets the roof. Older brick chimneys raise the familiar masonry questions about the crown, mortar joints, flashing and flue liner. With any gas appliance, if you smell gas, get everyone outside, then call 911 or your gas utility from there.
Inside the city, or unincorporated King County?
The Redmond name reaches past the city limits. King County’s Bear Creek/Sammamish community service area, unincorporated land east of Woodinville, Redmond and Sammamish, includes the Redmond Ridge Urban Planned Development. The City also has a neighborhood called Bear Creek inside its limits, so the similar names are easy to mix up.
The difference decides who issues permits. Inside the city it is the City of Redmond; in unincorporated areas it is King County Permitting, which takes most applications through MyBuildingPermit.com. King County’s community service areas page has an address lookup that tells you whether a home is unincorporated.
Permits for fireplace and chimney work in Redmond
Inside city limits, the City of Redmond’s Development Services Center reviews and issues construction permits. Redmond runs its own online system: permits that need no plan review go through the Redmond ePermitting Service (REPS), and larger ones through the City’s Plan Review Online portal. Redmond is not one of the cities on the regional MyBuildingPermit portal.
The City’s mechanical permit application says a mechanical permit is required before mechanical equipment is installed, altered, replaced or remodeled. The work types it lists include fireplaces, gas log inserts, wood pellet stoves or inserts, and gas piping.
Masonry repairs such as a new crown or repointing do not appear on that form. The Development Services Center is the place to confirm what a particular chimney scope needs; the City makes that call, not the contractor.
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.
Redmond chimney questions
Can we still use our gas fireplace when a burn ban is on?
Yes. The Puget Sound Clean Air Agency, which issues its bans county-wide, lists natural gas and propane stoves and inserts as allowed under both Stage 1 and Stage 2. Wood is another matter: a Stage 1 ban keeps wood-burning fireplaces dark, along with wood stoves and inserts that lack EPA or Washington emission approval, and Stage 2 extends that to all wood stoves, inserts and pellet stoves. The agency posts current status online and at 800-595-4341.
Our fireplace vents through a metal pipe inside a wood-sided box. Does that need attention?
It can. If the fireplace burns wood, the metal flue still collects creosote and needs sweeping. The framed chase around it is a roof penetration like any other, and water can get in around its metal cover or where it meets the roofing. Leak and flashing repair starts by tracing where the water actually enters.
We live in Redmond Ridge. Does the City of Redmond handle our permits?
No. King County places Redmond Ridge in its unincorporated Bear Creek/Sammamish area, and King County Permitting issues building and mechanical permits for unincorporated addresses. If you are unsure about a particular address, King County’s address lookup will tell you.
Our 1980s house has a brick fireplace we never use. Should we do anything about it?
An unused chimney still takes rain on its crown and flashing, and an open flue can let in water, debris and animals. An inspection tells you whether the masonry and flashing are sound, and a chimney cap helps keep rain, debris and wildlife out of the flue whether or not you ever light a fire.
Useful local links
- How to Apply — City of Redmond (opens in a new tab)
- Mechanical Permit Application — City of Redmond (opens in a new tab)
- Community service areas — King County Department of Local Services (opens in a new tab)
- Air Quality Burn Ban Status — Puget Sound Clean Air Agency (opens in a new tab)
- Census profile: Redmond, WA — U.S. Census Bureau data via Census Reporter (opens in a new tab)