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.
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AfterFast, Reliable Chimney Cap & Crown Across Andover
Chimney cap and crown repair in Andover usually costs between $225 and $680, depending on whether we’re patching a cracked crown or building a custom multi-flue cap from scratch. We reach most Andover homes within a day or two of your call, and every quote comes with the camera footage to back it up. The forested lots and old farmhouse chimneys around Routes 6, 316, and Lake Road keep us busy year-round here. Call (860) 743-7732 and Wendell or one of his crew will answer, not a call center.
Key Takeaways
- Crown repair in Andover typically runs $225-$480; a full custom cap replacement with stainless steel or copper runs $380-$680.
- Freeze-thaw spalling and wildlife intrusion are the two biggest cap and crown killers on Andover chimneys, not ordinary age.
- Shared flues in old attached farmhouses create cross-contamination risks most generic sweeps never flag.
- Every job includes camera inspection and a written 90-Day Done Right Promise.
- Senior and veteran discounts always apply, and we offer a free second opinion on any written estimate.
Why Top Hat Chimney Is Andover’s Preferred Chimney Cap & Crown Company
Wendell Pike started Top Hat Chimney in 1999 and he, or a crew member who answers directly to him, does the work on every Andover job. We’re not a franchise that swapped in a new tech last spring. When we say we know Andover chimneys, we mean the specific ones: the 1840s capes off Route 316, the farmhouse stacks along Burnap Brook Road, the older colonials near Andover Lake where wood stoves run from October through April as the main heat source.
Andover homeowners call us because the person who answers the phone knows what a shared flue stack is and doesn’t have to open a script. We work throughout the town, often on the same roads we’ve been up and down for years. Ask anyone on your street. The camera footage and a plain-English verdict, that’s how we handle every cap and crown inspection in Andover, every time, no exceptions.
If you’re in Andover and need a cap replaced before burning season, or a crown that’s been spalling since last winter, call us directly. We’ll give you a real arrival window and a price before a single tool comes off the truck. That number you get on the phone, that’s the number on the invoice.
Our Chimney Cap & Crown Services in Andover
Cap Installation
New cap installation in Andover runs $250 to $480 for a standard stainless steel unit sized to your flue. The dense canopy around town means we almost always recommend a cap with a full mesh screen, not just a rain hood. Raccoons and squirrels in Andover will find an open flue in a week, even on a chimney that fires daily. We install caps from Copperfield and other brands we trust, sized correctly so your draft doesn’t suffer.
Cap Replacement
If your existing cap is rusted through, bent from a falling limb, or screenless and colonized, replacement usually runs $180 to $400 in Andover depending on flue size and whether we need a standard, multi-flue, or custom unit. We pull the old cap, inspect the flue tile underneath, and show you what we found before we put anything new on. Your flue doesn’t care how the fire looks. It cares how it breathes.
Crown Repair
Crown repair is the most common cap-and-crown job we do in Andover, and it typically costs $300 to $560. The freeze-thaw cycle in Tolland County works on an old crown’s mortar joints all winter long, especially under the snow loads Andover roofs carry. We grind out the spalled material, re-slope the crown away from the flue openings, and seal it properly. A crown that sheds water is a crown that doesn’t dump it down your liner.
Crown Coating
When a crown is still structurally sound but starting to go porous, we can apply a flexible crown coating, usually $225 to $400. This buys years of protection on older Andover chimneys where a full crown rebuild isn’t yet necessary. We’ll tell you plainly if coating is enough or if you’d be throwing money at a crown that needs to be redone. That’s the whole point of the camera: you see it with us.
Multi-Flue Cap
This matters in Andover because so many of the older colonials and capes have two or three flues running through one central masonry stack. A multi-flue cap covers the entire crown and both flue openings with a single unit, usually $450 to $680 installed here. When a shared stack has two appliances venting side by side, a single properly designed multi-flue cap keeps cross-drafts from one flue pushing smoke down the other.
Custom Cap
Some Andover chimneys won’t take a standard cap. Odd flue spacing, an oversized stone crown, or a flue that was built before standard tile dimensions existed. Custom caps run $400 to $800 depending on material and fabrication. We measure, send specs to fabricators we work with regularly, and return to install. Copperfield and Olympia Chimney are our go-to sources for custom work.
What happens when you call
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A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
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You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
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A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
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You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Trusted Brands We Service in Andover
We install and service caps, crowns, and liners from a handful of brands we’ve come to trust after 29 years in chimneys across the region. That list includes DuraFlex for chimney liners, Gelco for crowns and sealants, and Copperfield for caps. We keep standard parts on the truck, which means less waiting for your Andover job when a cap needs replacing mid-season. If you’ve got a liner that’s failing behind a bad cap, we can often handle that repair in the same visit.
Common Chimney Cap & Crown Problems We See in Andover Homes
- Crown spalling from freeze-thaw cycles. Andover’s temperature crosses freezing dozens of times between October and April. Water seeps into small crown cracks, freezes, expands, and pops the mortar loose. A few years of that and the crown is shedding water directly into your flue system.
- Wildlife nesting and debris blockages. The forest canopy around Andover funnels raccoons, squirrels, and chimney swifts right to the roofline. We regularly pull full squirrel caches and raccoon bedding out of flues that burn wood every day from November to March. A good screened cap stops this before it becomes a fire.
- Cross-contamination in shared flue stacks. Andover’s older attached farmhouses and capes often share one big central chimney between two or three flues. When a common cap fails or a flue divider cracks, a neighbor’s wood stove can push smoke and carbon monoxide into your living space. This is not a rare occurrence here.
- Flashing failures at the roofline. Heavy snow loads and ice dams put real pressure on cap flashing and the flashing where the chimney meets the roof. We find failed flashing on roughly a third of the older Andover roofs we inspect, almost always paired with water staining around the chimney base.
Pricing for Chimney Cap & Crown in Andover, CT
What you’ll actually pay in Andover depends on what’s above your flue right now. A standard stainless cap replacement usually lands between $180 and $400. A multi-flue custom cap runs higher, $450 to $680. Crown repair sits between $300 and $560, and a full crown rebuild with proper slope and curing time can reach $700 on a large farmhouse chimney. If you’re dealing with wildlife damage, plan on an inspection first. We don’t guess. We show you the camera footage and then write a fixed price. Every Andover estimate is free, and if you’ve got another written quote, we’ll give you a free second opinion. Call (860) 743-7732 and you’ll get a real number before any work starts.
We Also Serve Cities Near Andover
If you live just over the town line, we also handle Chimney Cap & Crown work in Hebron, Coventry, Bolton, and Marlborough. The same crew, the same camera-backed inspection, the same written promise. We’re familiar with the whole Tolland County stretch, and we’re happy to come out to the neighboring towns whenever the need arises. For Andover-specific scheduling, though, call us directly and we’ll get you on the books.
Serving Andover, CT - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Andover 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 - Chimney Cap & Crown in Andover
Yes, and in Andover it happens more than you’d believe. A raccoon will bed down on a warm flue tile and tolerate the occasional heat cycle, and squirrels build caches in flues that see fire twice a day. The dense woods around Andover push wildlife right up against the roofline, and an uncapped or damaged cap is an open door. We’ve pulled full nests out of chimneys that were burning wood the same week. A properly fitted cap with full mesh screening stops the entry without choking your draft. Call (860) 743-7732 and we’ll inspect yours before burning season.
Not necessarily, but you do need a cap system designed for a multi-flue stack. Many Andover homes of that age have two or three flues sharing one big masonry crown, and a generic single-flue cap won’t cover the whole top. A properly sized multi-flue cap covers both openings with one unit, keeps animals out, and prevents one flue’s draft from pulling smoke down the other. We’ve installed them on dozens of old capes and colonials throughout Andover, including the 1840s cape job off Route 316 where a squirrel cache had blocked the shared stack.
Because a cheap patch job doesn’t fix the slope. A crown that holds water, even a little, will freeze and crack every winter in Andover. The repair has to grind out the damaged mortar, re-slope the crown away from the flue, and seal it with a product that flexes through freeze-thaw cycles. Gelco seals and proper curing make a real difference in Tolland County. If your crown was “repaired” and is cracking again within a few years, it likely wasn’t re-sloped, or the old material was just covered over. We’ll show you the difference on camera.
It often is, especially in older Andover homes with shared central chimneys and a common cap. If the cap sits too low over both flues or the flue divider inside the stack has cracked, one flue’s exhaust can slip across and enter the other flue as backdraft. That pushes smoke and carbon monoxide into your living space. We’ve fixed this exact problem in attached colonial-era homes around Andover. It’s a combination of cap design, flue separation, and sometimes a liner issue, and it should be inspected before you keep burning.
Every year, before burning season. Andover’s reliance on wood as a primary heat source means your chimney sees more fire cycles than a decorative fireplace in a suburb. More heat cycles, more creosote, more freeze-thaw stress on the crown, more wildlife pressure from the surrounding forest. Once a year, burn or no burn. Chimneys break in the off-season too. We inspect every year, show you the camera footage, and tell you honestly whether anything needs work now or can wait. Call (860) 743-7732 to book your Andover inspection.
Written by Wendell Pike, Owner at Top Hat Chimney, serving Andover and Tolland County since 1999.
Contact Top Hat Chimney for Cap & Crown Work in Andover
If you need a cap, a crown, or a straight answer about your chimney, call Wendell and his crew at (860) 743-7732. We serve all of Andover, from the lake roads to the rural routes, and we’ll give you an honest look at what you’ve got up there. Free estimates, a written 90-Day Done Right Promise on every job, and a live person on the phone when you call. Ask anyone on your street.