Level 1 sweep and inspection to the NFPA 211 annual standard - flue, crown, cap, and flashing checked and photographed
Chimney sweep logs do not sweep chimneys. They loosen some creosote - which then falls where a brush and vacuum still have to collect it.
Before
After
Before
After
Before
AfterChimney Cleaning Before & After in Bellevue, WA
We’ve cleaned and inspected more than 38,000 chimneys since 2009, and we’ve photographed every one of them. The camera doesn’t flatter. It shows exactly what Class III creosote looks like packed into a flue liner, or what spalling brick does to a smoke chamber. Below are real jobs from Bellevue and the neighborhoods we work in - Crossroads, Newport Hills, Somerset, and the Lake Hills corridor. Each one started with a camera-scan inspection, ended with a documented photo record under Haven Standard Clause 4, and came with a written price before we touched a brush.
Recent Transformations
Heavy Class III Creosote Removal - Somerset Ridge, Bellevue
The homeowner in Somerset had been burning unseasoned Douglas fir from a property on Cougar Mountain. After three seasons, the flue liner was coated with glazed Class III creosote - the hard, tar-like buildup that can’t be removed with standard wire brushes and poses the highest chimney fire risk. We ran a rotary chain-flail system with polypropylene whips at controlled RPM to break the glaze without damaging the 1980s terracotta liner. The camera scan after showed bare terracotta from smoke chamber to crown. Written price before we started: $385. Time on site: two hours. Photo record delivered same day.
Smoke Chamber Parging - Lake Hills, Bellevue
This 1972 split-level in Lake Hills had a corbeled brick smoke chamber - the area above the damper where the chimney narrows toward the flue - with mortar joints eroded from decades of acidic condensation. Gaps that size create turbulence, which means smoke doesn’t draw properly and creosote deposits unevenly. We applied HeatShield’s cerfractory foam coating, a refractory material rated to 2900°F that fills voids and creates a smooth, tapered surface. The NFPA 211 Level 2 camera inspection afterward confirmed full coverage with no pinholes. The homeowner got the photo set, the written warranty on materials, and the 365-Day Done Right Promise stamped on the invoice.
Stainless Liner Debris & Soot Removal - Newport Shores, Bellevue
Newport Shores sits low near Lake Washington, and the chimneys there deal with more moisture intrusion than the ridge homes in Somerset. This stainless steel liner, installed by another company in 2019, had collected wet, granular soot at the offsets - the bends where the liner navigates around fireplace framing. Wet soot weighs more than dry creosote and can block a flue partially before the homeowner notices any smoke backup. We removed the accumulation with a powered brush system sized to the 6-inch diameter, then ran a draft and spillage test with a manometer to confirm the fireplace would draw under real-world conditions. The draft reading improved from 12 pascals to 28 pascals. Written price: $295. No surprises, no upsell.
Firebox Refractory Panel Replacement - Crossroads, Bellevue
The prefabricated fireplace in this Crossroads townhome had refractory panels - the heat-reflecting walls of the firebox - with hairline cracks that had opened to quarter-inch gaps. Cracked refractory panels don’t just look bad. They lose their insulating value, which means the metal firebox wrapper behind them overheats. We sourced replacement panels through Haven’s buying network, measured the firebox to the sixteenth, and fitted new panels with the specified clearance to combustibles. The job included a full sweep of the connected flue, since debris from deteriorating panels often migrates upward. Final documentation: 14 photos, written scope, written warranty, and the Clause 4 archive entry.
Crown Rebuild with Proper Overhang - Factoria, Bellevue
This Factoria chimney had a crown - the concrete cap that sheds water from the top - that had been poured flush with the brick. No overhang, no drip edge. Water ran straight down the brick faces, which is why the homeowner called us after finding spalling - flaking surface damage from freeze-thaw cycles - on the south exposure. We formed and poured a new crown with a 2-inch overhang, a drip edge to break the water’s path, and a slope of at least 1/4 inch per foot toward the edge. The flue got swept while we had the scaffold up. Written price for crown and sweep together: $1,150. The alternative was waiting until water reached the liner and required a full rebuild.
Chimney Cap & Spark Arrestor Installation - Woodridge, Bellevue
The Woodridge home sat under a canopy of bigleaf maple, and the open flue had become a collection point for leaves, squirrel nesting material, and the kind of moisture that produces acidic runoff on flue liner walls. We installed a Gelco stainless steel cap with 5/8-inch mesh - small enough to stop sparks, large enough that Pacific Northwest mist doesn’t clog it the way finer mesh does. The cap covers both flues with a single lid, cross-broken to shed debris. Sweep and cap together: $475 written price. The photo record shows the flue interior before, the cap from three angles after, and the mesh clearance measurement.
Want Results Like These?
Every job above started the same way: a live person answered the phone, we scheduled an inspection, and we delivered a written price before any work started. No exceptions, no “call for a quote” runaround. If you’ve got a competitor’s written estimate, we’ll give you a free second opinion. If we do the work and something’s not right, the 365-Day Done Right Promise means we make it right. Call (425) 696-0387 - we’re live 24 hours a day, and we’ll text you when your tech is on the way.
Written by Corrine Halstead, Owner at Level Two Chimney Bellevue, serving Bellevue since 2009.