Sweep & inspection
Caps & crowns
Flue relining
Masonry repair
Gas fireplace serviceLevel 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.
Fast, Reliable Chimney Inspection Across Shady Hollow
A chimney inspection in Shady Hollow typically runs $129 – $349 depending on whether you need a standard Level 1 visual check or a Level 2 camera inspection, and most appointments are completed inside 45 – 90 minutes. We schedule Shady Hollow jobs six days a week, and our crews know the neighborhood’s 1970s – 1980s masonry fireplaces, original clay flue liners, and the debris the live oaks drop in every season. If you’re wondering whether something’s wrong, call (254) 274-4486 and we’ll give you a straight answer before you ever book.
Why Ashby Chimney Austin Is Shady Hollow’s Preferred Chimney Inspection Company
Shady Hollow homeowners call us because we answer the phone and we show up. Nathan Corliss runs our crews the same way he’s run things since 2002: every inspection gets a written price before we touch a ladder, and every head of household gets a written report with photos when we come down. That means when a tech points at a cracked clay liner on Brodie Lane, you’re not taking anyone’s word for it. You’re looking at the camera footage yourself.
Our Chimney Inspection in Shady Hollow work leans heavily on Level 2 camera checks, for reasons anyone who lives under the oak canopy already knows. Squirrels move in during September and October. Raccoons follow when the weather shifts. A visual-only inspection misses what’s packed halfway up the flue, and that’s exactly the kind of miss that turns into a chimney fire in January. We don’t play that game. Our techs arrive background-checked and in uniform, they carry cameras as standard equipment, and they write the report on site.
Styles & brands we work with
Chimney Fire in Shady Hollow
A chimney fire in Shady Hollow is almost always a creosote fire, and it almost always follows the same script: months of no fires, then a cold snap, then a family loads up the fireplace and the flue ignites. The oak trees overhead make it worse here, because the same leaf and twig debris that blocks airflow also gives creosote more surface area to cling to. Between the canopy and the age of the original clay liners, we treat every scheduling call as potentially urgent.
Our Chimney Inspection team checks for the early signs before ignition becomes a risk: first-degree creosote glaze, animal nests, and cracked flue tiles. If we find evidence of a prior chimney fire, you need a Level 2 camera inspection the same week to confirm whether the liner is still sound. Most chimney fire investigations in Shady Hollow run $299 – $449 with full photo documentation.
What a Chimney Fire Does to a Clay Liner
Clay liners don’t flex. When a flue fire hits 1,800 degrees, the tiles crack or spall, and that crack becomes the path for the next fire to reach wood framing directly. We regularly see this in two-story traditionals off Escarpment Boulevard and Brodie Lane. A liner that survived one fire often won’t survive a second.
Should You Sweep or Inspect First?
Small fires leave question marks. You might have charred creosote or you might have compromised masonry, and you can’t tell from the ground. In this situation, a camera inspection before you burn again costs less than the fire department’s invoice and a lot less than a rebuild. Call (254) 274-4486 and we’ll tell you exactly what we’d do if it were our house.
Level 2 Chimney Inspection in Shady Hollow
A Level 2 Chimney Inspection in Shady Hollow uses a camera pushed through the flue to document the liner, smoke chamber, and firebox in detail, and it’s the inspection we recommend most often for homes built before 1990. The original clay liners in this neighborhood have now survived four decades of central Texas heat, ice storms, and at least a few fires. Age alone isn’t enough to condemn one, but age plus camera evidence tells you exactly where you stand.
We use Olympia Chimney camera systems and the homeowner watches the live feed on our tablet. That’s the rule Nathan Corliss set years ago: nothing gets recommended that the homeowner hasn’t seen with their own eyes. If there’s spalling, you’ll see it. If the flue is clean, you’ll see that too. A Level 2 inspection in Shady Hollow runs $299 – $449, and the report includes dated photos you can keep for insurance or real estate paperwork.
When a Level 2 Is the Right Call
You need one when you’re buying or selling a home, after a chimney fire or storm, and anytime an animal has nested in the flue. In Shady Hollow, that third trigger is a fall tradition. We also recommend Level 2 before converting a wood-burning fireplace to gas logs, since the original clay liner often can’t handle the change in exhaust temperature.
The Camera Comes Standard Here
The oak canopy means our baseline is already elevated. A Level 1 visual check is fine for a recently inspected, recently swept flue with no history. For everything else, the camera comes out. It’s the difference between “looks okay from the bottom” and “here’s a hairline crack at the smoke chamber, and another one starting above the damper.”
Trusted Brands We Service in Shady Hollow
When a repair comes out of an inspection, we build it back with materials that have a track record, not whatever’s on the truck. Olympia Chimney makes the stainless steel liners we install most often in Shady Hollow homes. We also keep HeatShield and DuraFlex components on hand for jobs that don’t require a full reline. Local stock means shorter waits for homeowners off Davis Lane or around Shady Hollow Drive. The warranty on every repair is written, and if it fails inside the guarantee period, we come back at no charge. That’s the 365-Day Done Right Promise, and it’s not a sales pitch. It’s in the paperwork.
See the difference
Before
After
Before
After
Before
AfterCommon Chimney Inspection Problems We See in Shady Hollow Homes
- First-degree creosote glaze on original clay liners. Cold snaps after long idle periods bring people back to the fireplace, and the first burn sends combustion byproducts up a flue that hasn’t been swept since the previous winter. In Shady Hollow’s dry heat, creosote bakes into a hard glaze that brushes barely touch.
- Animal nests packed into the flue. The live oak canopy gives squirrels and raccoons everything they need: nesting material, roof access, and a quiet chimney to claim. Most nests we find are in September through December, and some are dense enough to block airflow entirely.
- Cracked or spalled clay tiles from decades of freeze-thaw cycles. Central Texas gets enough ice storms to stress mortar joints and clay tiles. By the 40-year mark, most original liners in Shady Hollow show at least some cracking at the smoke chamber or upper flue.
- Mortar pop-outs at the chimney crown and flashing gaps after ice storms. Water gets in, spalling accelerates, and the next inspection finds damage that started with a hairline gap nobody caught last spring. An inspector who doesn’t walk the roofline misses this every time.
Pricing for Chimney Inspection in Shady Hollow, TX
Most chimney inspections in Shady Hollow run between $129 and $449, and the big variable is whether you need a Level 1 visual check or a Level 2 camera inspection. A standard Level 1 runs $129 – $199 and works for a fireplace that’s been recently swept and has no known problems. A Level 2 runs $299 – $449 and includes full camera documentation of the flue, smoke chamber, and firebox. Level 3 inspections, where masonry is opened up to access concealed damage, are quoted case by case after the camera work is reviewed. Every inspection includes a written report, and you’ll get the price in writing before we climb. Estimates are free, and the phone is answered by a live person whenever you call.
We Also Serve Cities Near Shady Hollow
Ashby Chimney Austin runs inspection crews throughout the metro, so the same written-price, written-guarantee process applies whether you’re in Shady Hollow, down in Kyle, up in Round Rock, over in Austin proper, or north toward Georgetown. Scheduling works the same way everywhere: call (254) 274-4486, get a real person, and get a straight answer about what an inspection should cost.
Serving Shady Hollow, TX - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Shady Hollow area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs About Chimney Inspection in Shady Hollow
Once a year, even if you only burn occasionally, because the oak canopy above Shady Hollow drops enough leaf and twig debris that an unused chimney can become blocked or nested in a single season. A Level 1 visual check is usually enough for light-use fireplaces, but we’ll tell you honestly if a Level 2 camera inspection or our Chimney Sweep in Shady Hollow is warranted. If your flue hasn’t been looked at in two or more years, call (254) 274-4486 and we’ll get you scheduled before the next cold snap.
Most Shady Hollow homes were built in the 1970s and 1980s with original clay flue liners, and those liners have now been through four decades of central Texas heat, ice storms, and occasional chimney fires. Add the heavy leaf and twig debris from the live oaks, plus animal nesting each fall, and a visual-only check from the roof or firebox can’t rule out hidden cracks or blockages. That’s why we recommend a Level 2 camera inspection as the default for homes here. The camera shows you exactly what’s inside.
Yes, a camera inspection shows nests, debris, and blockages without opening any masonry. We can usually see exactly what’s in the flue and how far down it sits. In Shady Hollow, our crews find squirrel and raccoon nesting material most often between September and December, when the oak canopy gives animals easy roof access. If you’re hearing scratching or noticing a smell from the firebox, call (254) 274-4486 and we’ll get a camera in there.
First-degree creosote looks like a thin, shiny black glaze or a dry, flaky dark coating on the clay or metal interior of the flue, and it matters in Shady Hollow because the neighborhood’s dry heat bakes it into a hard, tar-like layer that brushes struggle to remove. Left alone, it builds into second- and third-degree creosote, which is the fuel for most chimney fires. The camera inspection shows you exactly what degree of buildup you have, so you’re not guessing.
Ask for a close look at the chimney crown, the mortar joints on the exposed masonry above the roofline, and the flashing where the chimney meets the roof. Ice storms cause pop-outs and micro-cracks that let water into the firebox, and that water accelerates spalling on old clay liners. We do a full crown and flashing review as part of every Level 2 inspection. If you saw water in the firebox or water stains on the ceiling near the chimney, call (254) 274-4486 and we’ll inspect before the damage compounds.
Need a chimney inspection in Shady Hollow? Call (254) 274-4486 for honest advice, a written price, and a real person on the other end of the line. We’ll walk you through which inspection level fits your fireplace, and we’ll never recommend work you haven’t seen with your own eyes.
Written by Nathan Corliss, Owner at Ashby Chimney Austin, serving Shady Hollow since 2002.