Chimney repair · New Brighton, MN
Chimney repair in New Brighton, MN
More than half of New Brighton's houses went up in the 1960s and 70s. That puts their chimneys right in the years when mortar gives out.
Tuckpointing, crown rebuilds, leaks around the chimney, rebuilds above the roof, sweeps and inspections. We do the masonry ourselves.
We work weekdays, 9 to 5. Pick any time on the form and Kari will call you to set the exact one.
Repoint it or rebuild it?
That's the question on most chimneys this age, and the brick answers it. If the bricks are hard and square and it's the joints that are washed out, we grind out the bad mortar and repoint to match. If the faces are flaking off or the brick is soft, repointing just puts new mortar around bad brick, and the top of the chimney gets rebuilt from solid brick up.
Why the top goes first
The chimney below the roof sits inside a warm house. The part above it gets rain from every side, snow on the crown, and no heat at all. Water gets in, freezes, and pushes. That's why you'll see a chimney that looks fine from the attic and falling apart on the roof.
Condos and townhomes
Only about half the homes in New Brighton are detached houses. If you're in a townhome or a condo with a fireplace, the chimney may be the association's to maintain, not yours. Find out before you book, and if the association wants the whole row looked at, we can do that too.
New Brighton, by the numbers
Built in the 60s and 70s, and it shows.
54% of New Brighton's 9,448 homes went up in the 1960s and 70s, and the median house was built in 1973. That's a lot of chimneys hitting the same age at once.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, table B25034 (year structure built).
Milder here, but not mild
There's no long-record weather station inside New Brighton, so we use the nearest one, at Vadnais Lake, about 5 and a half miles east. Over seven full winters it averaged 74 freeze-thaw days and 18 nights at zero or colder. That's gentler than the stations farther north, and close to what the airport sees. The first freeze tends to come late, around October 27, and the last one around April 22.
It swings a lot year to year
Those 74 days are an average, and the winters behind it swung from 49 to 91. A soft winter lets a cracked crown slide, and the next hard one catches up all at once. On a chimney built in the 60s or 70s, one bad winter is often what turns a repointing job into a rebuild.
Chimney inspection in New Brighton
We photograph all four sides above the roofline, the crown and the flashing, and then run a camera down each flue. The point of the inspection on a chimney this age is to answer one question before it answers itself: can this brick be repointed, or does the top need to come down.
The number that says call sooner
Across all our brick chimney repairs with a written scope, 234 of them, repointing on its own was part of 76. Rebuilding or repairing flaking brick was part of 162. Those are company-wide numbers, not New Brighton's, but the gap tells you most people call after the joints have already let the brick go. Catch it while it's still a joint problem and it's a smaller job.
What you can check from the yard
Stand across the street with binoculars or your phone zoomed all the way in. Look at the top few rows of brick, right under the crown. If the joints there look darker, deeper or rougher than the joints lower down, the water's already working. If you see white staining running down the brick, that's water coming through the chimney and drying on the outside. Send us that picture and we'll tell you what it means.
Our own work
From open joints to a new top.
Our own jobs, start to finish. A 1970s brick chimney fails the same way wherever it stands.
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Chimney sweep in New Brighton
Our sweep rides along with the inspection. We measure the buildup inside each flue, and anything over an eighth of an inch gets swept that visit. An eighth of an inch sounds like nothing, but it's the point where the buildup starts to become fuel. If the fireplace only gets lit a few times a year, it may not need sweeping every year, and we'll tell you straight when it doesn't.
If you burn a few times a year
A fireplace that gets three or four fires a winter builds up slowly, so the sweep may only be needed every couple of years. The inspection is still worth doing every year, because the weather works on the outside of the chimney whether you light it or not.
Talk to Kari
Ask Kari which one yours needs.
Call Kari at 320.414.0191. Tell her what you see from the driveway, and she'll give you the price for an inspection and a day we're already in New Brighton.
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.
“Element did a great job on my chimney rebuild. All of their team were super helpful and did great work.”
“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...”
“Communication was excellent through the entire process. Dates and times for the estimate and the actual work were set and kept. Jason talked about the options I had and explained them. That afternoon I received a confirmation E-Mail, and I accepted the terms. Within ten days a work day was scheduled....”
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Questions we get about New Brighton chimneys
How do I know if my chimney needs tuckpointing?
Look at the joints from the ground with a pair of binoculars. If they're recessed, cracked or missing, water is getting in. We'll get up there, photograph every side, and tell you how much of it needs work.
Can you match the color of my old mortar?
We match the mortar to the brick so the repair doesn't stick out, and you get photos of the finished work.
Can we do the repair in stages?
Often, yes. Some pieces have to happen together, like a new crown going on after any work at the top of the flue, and some can wait a season. We'll tell you which is which, and you can get a separate number for each piece.
Can you give me a number from photos, or do you have to come out?
Send us the photos and we'll tell you what we think it is. The written number comes after we've been on the roof, because what's wrong up there is usually more or less than it looks from the yard.
Are chimneys structural?
The chimney holds itself up, and not much else. But a brick chimney is heavy, and when the top starts coming apart, loose brick can end up on the roof or the ground. That's the reason not to let a crumbling top go another winter.
Is fall too late to get masonry done?
Not always. Mortar and concrete need temperatures above freezing to cure right, so late-fall work gets scheduled around the forecast. If a job can't be done right before the cold, we'll tell you it should wait for spring.
How much does it cost to repoint a chimney in New Brighton?
That depends on how much of it needs work, so we price it from the pictures. Call Kari at 320.414.0191 to set up the inspection, and you'll get the photos and a written number.
Nearby, too
Same crew, same inspection, all over the north metro.
Got a chimney in New Brighton?
Recessed joints, flaking brick, or a crack across the top? Call Kari or book online. We'll photograph every side and tell you whether it repoints or rebuilds.
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.