Chimney repair · Forest Lake & Hugo, MN
Chimney repair in Forest Lake & Hugo, MN
Lake houses, newer subdivisions, and an older core in Forest Lake. Three different chimneys, all failing at the top.
Crowns, flashing, liners, tuckpointing, rebuilds above the roof, chase covers, sweeps and inspections.
We work weekdays, 9 to 5. Pick any time on the form and Kari will call you to set the exact one.
A lake lot takes more weather
A chimney on an open lot near the water takes wind-driven rain from directions a chimney in a packed subdivision never sees. The weather side opens up years ahead of the sheltered side, which is why these chimneys often look fine from the driveway and are half gone on the other side. We photograph all four sides, so you see the whole chimney.
The newer houses have a different weak spot
A lot of Hugo's 2000s houses have a factory-built fireplace in a framed chase with a metal cover on top. When that cover rusts or holds water, it drips onto the flue pipe and into the framing. We check the cover, the storm collar and the flashing, and replace what's failed.
Forest Lake: 1970s brick and an old core
Forest Lake built more houses in the 1970s than in any decade before the 2000s, about 1,504 of them, and about 624 homes there went up before 1940. Unless somebody has repointed them, chimneys that age are still on their original mortar, and a lot of the crowns from then were poured thin. Those are the two things that go first.
Hugo: mostly new, mostly owners
Hugo's median house was built in 2003, and nearly nine in ten homes are owner-occupied. If you bought new and nobody's been up on the chimney since, twenty years in is when that first real look is worth doing.
Forest Lake & Hugo, by the numbers
Forest Lake is older. Hugo is mostly 2000s.
Forest Lake's and Hugo's 15,394 homes combined, by decade. Hugo drives the 2000s bar. Forest Lake fills in the older ones.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, table B25034 (year structure built).
Two stations, two readings
Forest Lake's nearest NOAA station, about six and a half miles northeast, averaged 86 freeze-thaw days a winter over seven complete winters, and 28 nights at zero or colder. Hugo sits between that station and the one at Vadnais Lake, about 10 miles south, which averaged 74 and 18. So the north end of this area gets about a dozen more freeze-thaw days a winter than the south end.
The frost season
At the Forest Lake station the first freeze usually shows up around October 15 and the last one around April 29. At Vadnais Lake it's closer to October 27 and April 22. A chimney that stays wet through that stretch freezes and thaws dozens of times before spring dries it out.
Why the crown decides it
A crown that hangs past the brick with a drip edge throws water clear of the chimney. A flush one lets it run down the face and into the joints. With 74 to 86 freeze-thaw days a winter, that one detail decides how long the brick under it lasts.
Chimney inspection in Forest Lake and Hugo
An older Forest Lake chimney gets the crown, the mortar above the roofline, the flashing and the clay tiles checked, with a camera up every flue. A newer Hugo house with a factory-built fireplace gets the chase top, the storm collar, the flashing and the metal flue checked. Either way the pictures come to you with a written report.
Flashing and water, by the numbers
Out of the 418 repair scopes we've written up, flashing was part of 103 and water getting in was part of 103. That's about one in four. A leak next to the chimney is usually the crown, the flashing or open joints rather than the shingles, and the inspection shows you which.
Stoves added to older chimneys
On an older Forest Lake chimney where a wood stove or insert went in years after the house was built, the flue often wasn't sized for it, or it's running into clay tiles meant for a fireplace. The camera shows what's in there. If it needs a stainless liner sized to the stove, that's permitted work, and we pull the permit and meet the inspector.
Our own work
Crowns, liners and flashing.
Photos from our own jobs. They show the work you'd be getting.
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Chimney sweep in Forest Lake and Hugo
The inspection comes first, every time. If the camera shows more than an eighth of an inch of buildup in a flue, we sweep it on the same visit. If it doesn't, it doesn't get swept, and we'll show you why.
Cabin fireplaces and lake houses
A fireplace that sits unused most of the year still needs a look. Nests, fallen tiles and critters all end up in flues that don't get used, and the first fire of the season is the worst time to find out.
Talk to Kari
Forest Lake or Hugo? Kari has the answers.
Call her at 320.414.0191 and tell her what you're seeing. She'll give you the price for your chimney and a day on the schedule.
We work weekdays, 9 to 5. Pick any time on the form and Kari will call you to set the exact one.
Google reviews
What people wrote after we left.
“He worked with my brother and was told he was very professional explaining any do's and don'ts. Will continue using them and recommend his company to anyone needing chimney work. Thank you Element Hearth and Home for a job well done. The original work was extremely well done. I'm a happy customer.”
“Element Hearth & Home represents what all businesses should strive for... They have done two separate projects for me in the last year, and both have been exceptional - no complaints whatsoever. If you're looking for experts and want the job done right, look no further.”
“On time, professional and extremely clear in all explanations! The technician was respectful and I appreciated all the photos he took of the chimney and the video scan. This allowed me to see for myself the damage and repair that was needed...”
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Forest Lake and Hugo questions
Do you pull the permits in Forest Lake and Hugo?
Yes. Forest Lake, Hugo and Wyoming each permit through their own city offices, and we file with whichever one covers your address. Crowns, covers, flashing and repointing usually don't need one.
We got a new roof and it still leaks by the chimney. What's going on?
New shingles and new flashing don't stop water that's getting in above them. If the crown is cracked or the joints above the roof are open, water runs down inside the brick and shows up in the same spot. We find where it's getting in before anybody tears anything off.
Is the chimney cap that important?
Yes. Without one, rain and snow go straight down the flue, and so do birds and squirrels. On a flue that's been uncapped for a while, we look for rust on the damper and debris at the bottom.
Can you tell what's wrong from photos, or do you need to come out?
Send the pictures to info@elementhearthandhome.com and we'll tell you what it looks like. The written number for masonry comes after we've been up there, because the side you can't see from the ground is usually the side that matters.
What's the buildup inside a chimney called?
Creosote. It's what's left when smoke cools on the flue walls, and it can burn. Once it's more than an eighth of an inch thick, we sweep it.
Can we use the fireplace this winter and fix it in spring?
Sometimes. If it's a crown or joints that need work before they get worse, usually yes. If a flue is cracked or the liner has a gap, no. We'll tell you which it is when we're up there.
How often should we have the chimney looked at?
Every year before you start burning. A lake-house fireplace that only gets used on weekends still needs it, because critters, nests and weather don't wait for you to light it.
Nearby, too
Same crew, same inspection, next door.
Got a chimney in Forest Lake or Hugo?
Walk around to the weather side and look up, then call us. We'll get on the roof and photograph all four sides.
We work weekdays, 9 to 5. Pick any time on the form and Kari will call you to set the exact one.
Got pictures of your chimney? Email them to info@elementhearthandhome.com with your name and number, and Kari will take it from there.