The Top of Your Chimney Is Where Most Leaks Start
Stand in the backyard of a 1970s brick home in Dalworthington Gardens or near Fielder Park and look at the top of the chimney. You will usually see a thin slab of grey mortar with a crack across it, a corner missing, and dark streaks running down the brick below. That slab is the chimney crown, and chimney crown repair in Arlington, TX is the repair we do most often after water shows up around a fireplace.
Crownline Chimney Sweep repairs and rebuilds chimney crowns across Arlington. Hairline cracks on a sound crown get sealed with a flexible coating. A crown that is broken, thin or built from mortar gets formed and poured again in concrete with a proper overhang. The estimate is free, and the price is in writing before we climb the ladder.
This page explains what the crown does, why it fails so fast in North Texas, how we fix it, what it costs in DFW, and the questions Arlington homeowners ask most.
What a Chimney Crown Does
The crown is the lid of a masonry chimney. It covers the top course of brick, slopes away from the flue, and should hang past the brick by an inch or two so water drips off instead of running down the face. The flue tiles poke up through it, and there should be a small gap filled with sealant between the tile and the crown so the tile can expand with heat.
A good crown is poured concrete, two to three inches thick, with a drip edge. Many Arlington chimneys from the 1950s through the 1980s were finished with a thin wash of mortar instead. Mortar is not concrete; it is weak, it has no overhang, and it cracks the first time the flue tiles heat up and push on it.
Why Chimney Crowns Crack in Arlington
Our crew has looked at a lot of crowns on Arlington roofs over 20 years, and the same three causes come up on nearly every one:
- Clay soil movement. The soil under Arlington swells with spring rain and shrinks in August. The chimney rides on it and moves a little every year. A rigid crown cracks.
- Heat. The clay flue tiles expand when you burn a fire. A crown poured tight against the tiles has nowhere to go, so it cracks around the flue first.
- Weather. Tarrant County hail chips the surface. Summer sun bakes it. Then a heavy rain fills every hairline crack, and water inside the crown makes the crack wider.
Once the crown leaks, the water goes into the brick and the flue below. That is why a cracked crown turns into spalled brick, washed-out mortar joints, cracked flue tiles and a rusted damper. Most of the chimney masonry and tuckpointing jobs we do started with a crown nobody fixed.
Signs Your Chimney Crown Needs Repair
You can see most crown problems from the ground with a pair of binoculars, and all of them from the roof:
- Cracks across the crown, from hairline to open gaps.
- Chunks missing from the corners or the edge.
- White staining or dark streaks on the brick just under the crown.
- Water stains on the ceiling or wall by the fireplace after a hard rain.
- Pieces of mortar or brick on the roof or in the gutter below the chimney.
- A damper that is rusting, or a firebox that smells damp.
If you cannot get on the roof, do not. Every Crownline chimney inspection includes photos of the crown from roof level, and we flag the crown on every sweep visit as well.
Seal or Rebuild? How We Decide
There are two kinds of chimney crown repair, and the right one depends on what the crown is made of and how far gone it is.
Crown sealing is for a crown that is still solid: poured concrete or thick mortar, with hairline cracks and no missing pieces. We clean the surface, fill the cracks, and brush on a flexible, waterproof crown coating that moves with the chimney instead of cracking again. One visit, dry by the end of the day.
Crown rebuild is for a crown that has failed: through-cracks, missing chunks, a thin mortar wash, or no overhang. We remove the old crown down to sound brick, build a form, and pour a new concrete crown with a slope, a drip edge and an expansion gap around the flue tiles. After it cures we coat it. This is the fix that lasts 30 years.
We tell you which one you need with photos, and we do not sell a rebuild to a crown that only needs sealing.
What Our Chimney Crown Repair Includes
- Roof-level inspection with photos. Crown, flue tiles, cap, top courses of brick and flashing. You see the photos before we recommend anything.
- Written price. One itemized estimate for sealing or rebuilding, free, with the chimney cap and any brick work listed as separate lines.
- Removal and prep. For a rebuild, the old crown comes off down to solid brick. For sealing, cracks are cleaned out and dried.
- Form and pour, or fill and coat. New concrete crown with overhang and drip edge, or crack fill plus a flexible crown coating.
- Flue expansion gap. Sealant between the flue tile and the crown so heat does not crack the new crown.
- Cap reset. The chimney cap goes back on, or a new stainless cap is installed if the old one is rusted or missing.
- Clean-up and photos. Roof and gutters cleared of debris, and after photos sent to you.
Most crown sealing jobs take a couple of hours. A rebuild is usually one day plus curing time before the coating goes on.
What Chimney Crown Repair Costs in Arlington
Arlington chimney companies publish almost no prices, so here is the one DFW source that does. Brown Chimney’s crown-cost calculator starts a crown repair at the crown’s length times width in inches plus $500, and a full rebuild at length times width plus $1,500; their own example for a 36-by-36-inch crown repair comes to $1,796, and hard roof access raises those base figures. Treat that as the typical DFW range.
What moves the price on your chimney:
| Factor | Lower cost | Higher cost |
|---|---|---|
| Crown condition | Hairline cracks, solid slab | Through-cracks, missing pieces, mortar wash |
| Chimney size | Single flue, small footprint | Two or three flues, wide crown |
| Roof access | One story, walkable roof | Two stories, steep pitch |
| Brick below | Sound | Top courses need rebuilding first |
| Cap | Reused | New stainless cap |
Crownline does not quote crowns over the phone. We inspect, photograph, and put the price in writing. Estimates are free, seniors, veterans and first responders get 10% off, and we match a written quote from an insured company for the same work. One discount per job.
Hail, Storms and Insurance in Tarrant County
Spring hail across Tarrant County is the one time a crown repair might be an insurance job. Hail chips and cracks crowns and dents caps, and a wind storm can lift a cap off and crack the crown with it. Insurers cover sudden storm damage far more often than slow wear, and the difference is proof. Our inspection report includes dated photos of the crown from the roof, which is what adjusters ask for. The Texas Department of Insurance storm guidance explains how claims work in Texas. Call your agent before filing, and call us for the photos.
Why Arlington Homeowners Call Crownline for Crown Repair
Crownline Chimney Sweep is a local Arlington company at 700 Highlander Blvd near the Parks Mall, not a lead site with a rented suite. Our crew has worked on Arlington brick chimneys for more than 20 years, including the mortar-crowned chimneys in Central Arlington, Dalworthington Gardens, Pantego and East Arlington near the stadiums. We are insured and bonded, which matters on roof work.
On every crown job you get a free estimate, a written price before work, photos from the roof before and after, and a crown built to last instead of a smear of mortar. That is the standard behind calling ourselves the best chimney company in Arlington, and it is why we are becoming the local chimney company Arlington homeowners trust.
Crown repair is one of the chimney repair services Crownline provides in Arlington, TX. Pair it with chimney waterproofing on the brick below, and the top of your chimney is sealed for years. Call (817) 505-4222 or request a free estimate below, and we will look at the crown before the next storm does.