Chimney Sweep in Cold Spring, NY
Chimney sweeping for Cold Spring homes: close-set nineteenth-century houses, oil heat and a historic district with its own chimney standard.
Chimney sweeping in Cold Spring
The Village of Cold Spring is in the Town of Philipstown, Putnam County, on the east bank of the Hudson. From Cornwall it is across the river, by way of the Bear Mountain Bridge or the Newburgh–Beacon Bridge.
It is a compact village. Census estimates show about four in ten homes built before 1940, and close to half of all homes attached or in multi-unit buildings. The village's National Register historic district is made up largely of buildings from the middle of the nineteenth century.
Oil heat in old flues
About two thirds of Cold Spring homes heat with fuel oil, and very few with utility gas. That is the reverse of the villages on the Orange County side.
Oil soot is fine, black and acidic. It coats the flue and drops to the base of the chimney. In a nineteenth-century chimney the flue may be unlined, or lined with old clay tile, so the soot sits against soft brick and lime mortar. Yearly sweeping keeps it from building up and lets the flue walls be seen.
Attached and close-set houses add one more thing to check. Chimneys in a row may sit on a shared wall, and a stack can hold more than one flue. Each flue is swept and scanned separately.
Chimneys in the historic district
The village design standards for the historic district have a rule on chimneys. No exposed metal or concrete block chimneys. A metal chimney is acceptable when it is enclosed, and the finish has to be masonry. The standards also recommend caps with spark arrestors.
Exterior changes to a property in the district need a Certificate of Appropriateness from the Historic District Review Board. Sweeping does not change anything outside. A new cap, a rebuilt crown or an exposed liner termination might, so ask the village before that kind of work. The village also prohibits new outdoor wood furnaces.
Our chimney services
Where Cold Spring is
Service area map. Not an office location.
Booking a chimney sweep in Cold Spring
Mention that you are in Cold Spring, New York when you call, so the river crossing can be planned into the visit. If the exposed brick is flaking, see chimney masonry repair, where mortar matching on old brick is covered.
Chimney sweep in Cold Spring
Oil heat and an older chimney? Have it swept and scanned once a year.