A Top company - serving Charlottesville, VA

Before & After Gallery - Top Hat Chimney

Every visit starts with

Level 1 sweep and inspection to the NFPA 211 annual standard - flue, crown, cap, and flashing checked and photographed

Worth knowing

Chimney sweep logs do not sweep chimneys. They loosen some creosote - which then falls where a brush and vacuum still have to collect it.

Styles & brands we work with

Before & after – our own jobs

Before - Recent Project — Recent Project

Before - Full Restoration — Full Restoration

After - Full Restoration — Full Restoration

Before - Complete Upgrade — Complete Upgrade

After - Complete Upgrade — Complete Upgrade

Chimney Cleaning Before & After in Charlottesville, VA

We’ve said for 29 years that your flue doesn’t care how the fire looks. It cares how it breathes. Photos of the inside of a chimney tell the truth faster than any sales pitch, so we take them on every job. Here’s what that looks like in real Charlottesville homes, from Woolen Mills to Fry’s Spring, and what changed when we finished.

Call (540) 503-3890

Recent Transformations

Third-Degree Creosote Glaze in a Fry’s Spring Fireplace

Before and after chimney cleaning showing glazed creosote removal in Fry's Spring Charlottesville — Camera view before and after glazed creosote removal from a Fry’s Spring flue.

This fireplace had burned mostly unseasoned wood for two winters, and the camera showed what we call third-degree creosote: a shiny, tarred glaze across the upper third of the flue. First-degree creosote is a brush job. This was beyond that, so Wendell’s crew ran a rotary whip with a nylon head followed by a chemical treatment to break the bond. The after footage showed raw clay liner again, and the homeowner could actually hear the difference in the draft the first time they lit a fire.

Wood Stove in Belmont Choked with Soot and a Partial Blockage

Before and after chimney sweep of a wood stove flue in Belmont Charlottesville — The flue interior before and after clearing heavy soot and a partial blockage in a Belmont wood stove setup.

A Belmont homeowner called us because their wood stove was backpuffing smoke into the living room. The sweep who showed up at your door found a flue that was about 70% packed with soft soot and a squirrel nest sitting on top of the baffle plate from an uncapped section. We removed the nest, swept the full run, and capped the opening the animal had been using. The stove drew clean after that, and the only call since was to ask about a cap for the second flue.

First-Degree Creosote in a North Downtown Historic Home

Before and after creosote brushing in a historic North Downtown Charlottesville chimney — From crusted first-degree creosote to clean flue walls in a North Downtown Charlottesville fireplace.

This one was more routine, and that’s exactly why the homeowner had it done. The North Downtown house was built in 1921, and the fireplace gets used maybe a dozen times a season. The before photos showed a crusted layer of first-degree creosote, the kind that brushes off with elbow grease and the right rods. We swept it top to bottom, ran the camera again to verify the liner was sound, and left the firebox cleaned out. Once a year, burn or no burn. Chimneys break in the off-season too, and this one didn’t get the chance.

Water-Damaged Smoke Chamber in a Redfields Home

Before and after smoke chamber cleaning and repair in Redfields Charlottesville — Smoke chamber corrosion and buildup before, and the smoothed chamber after cleaning and repair.

The camera found what years of small leaks will do to a smoke chamber: rust staining, flaking mortar, and a creosote layer that had mixed with dampness into something closer to sludge. Water finds its way in through a cracked crown, and the chamber is where a lot of the damage hides. Wendell and his crew cleaned the chamber, repaired the divots with chamber-safe mortar, and replaced the cracked cap that started the whole problem. The after footage looked like a different chimney, and we gave the homeowner the photos to prove it.

Chimney Cleaning on a Horse Farm Near Ivy

Before and after chimney cleaning at a horse farm near Ivy Virginia — Heavy buildup from frequent winter burns before, and the cleaned flue after at an Ivy area horse farm.

This flue serviced a farmhouse fireplace that runs from October through March, and it showed. The before footage looked like a chimney that hadn’t been visited in four or five seasons, with a thick band of creosote hugging every bend. The sweep ran the full system: rods, brush, then a camera pass to confirm nothing was left behind. The after shots showed clean terra cotta, and we flagged a few small flue tile cracks the camera picked up while we were in there, with a recommendation to revisit the liner when the burning season ended.

Basement Fireplace in a Barracks Road Condo Restored After Years of Disuse

Before and after cleaning of a long-dormant basement fireplace flue in Charlottesville — A long-dormant basement fireplace flue before and after a full sweep and smoke test.

The condo association had told the owner this fireplace was sealed off, but the camera said otherwise. Decades of dust, dry debris, and a few soda cans from the previous owner came out of that flue. We swept everything, ran a smoke test, and confirmed the draft was working. The owner got a clean fireplace and a short education on how often a basement flue needs attention, even in a multi-unit building where some flues share a common chase.

Want Results Like These?

If your chimney hasn’t been swept in a year or two, the camera will tell you the story whether you ask for it or not. We show you the footage and give you a plain-English verdict, every time, no exceptions. Call (540) 503-3890 and we’ll get you booked. Ask anyone on your street.

Written by Wendell Pike, Owner at Top Hat Chimney, serving Charlottesville since 1999.

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