Chimney Restoration in San Marino and Nearby Towns
San Marino and the streets around The Huntington
San Marino
San Marino is the town we serve first, and its older brick chimneys are the work we know best. Many homes here were built between 1920 and 1960, often with elaborate masonry fireplaces. On a stack like that we start by reading the mortar: its color, its hardness and the shape of the joint. Repointing then follows that profile, so new work blends with the old instead of standing out. We check the crown for hairline cracks, run a camera down the clay tile flue, and look closely at the firebox and surround. You then get a written plan that says what can be kept, what needs repair now and what can wait.
Pasadena, from Bungalow Heaven and Madison Heights to Linda Vista
Pasadena
Pasadena borders San Marino, so its brick chimneys fill a large part of our week. Homes built here from the 1920s through the 1950s often have unreinforced masonry chimneys, and that shapes how we work. Before any repointing, we check that the stack above the roofline is still tied in and standing plumb. Loose courses are reset in matching brick where we can find it. Joints are cut out with care, not ground wide, and refilled to the original profile. Where the clay tile liner has cracked, we explain the two usual fixes, a stainless reline or a cast-in-place liner, and which one suits your flue.
Alhambra, on the west side of the San Gabriel Valley
Alhambra
Alhambra's housing runs from the 1920s to today, and the older brick chimneys show their age at the joints first. On those stacks we test how soft the existing mortar is before we mix anything, then repoint to match it. We also look inside the chimney, because a smoke chamber with rough or missing parging can push smoke back into the room. Parging can be restored without touching the outside brick at all. If the crown has cracked through, we tell you whether a patch will hold or a new crown is the better fix. Every finding comes with a photo you can keep.
Temple City, a compact residential city just south of Arcadia
Temple City
Temple City homes went up mostly from the 1940s through the 1970s, and most carry a standard brick chimney. Those stacks are simple, which makes them good candidates for restoration instead of replacement. The usual work is repointing the top courses, rebuilding or resurfacing the crown, and fitting a new cap. Inside, an old steel damper may be rusted shut or warped out of shape. We can replace it in the throat, or fit a top-sealing damper at the flue. If the house is changing hands, we write the condition up clearly so buyer and seller read the same facts.
Arcadia, from the Santa Anita area up to the foothill streets
Arcadia
Many Arcadia properties have been renovated or rebuilt, so original masonry chimneys sit beside newer fireplace systems. Our work here is mostly on the older brick stacks that owners want to keep. We look at the crown, the flashing line and the mortar above the roof, then run a camera through the flue to check the clay tiles. A stack in fair shape can usually be repointed, recrowned and capped. If the liner has failed, relining lets you keep the brick and still use the fireplace safely. Newer gas units get a venting check and a plain note on what we found.
Sierra Madre, the small foothill city at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains
Sierra Madre
Sierra Madre has a strong preservation ethic, and many homes still have original masonry chimneys from the early 1900s. That is the kind of work we like best. Old patches often used hard gray mortar that does not match the softer original. We cut those patches out, match the old color and texture, and repoint so the stack reads as one piece again. Where bricks have spalled, we look for salvaged brick of the same size and tone. A cracked liner gets relined, not the whole chimney rebuilt. The aim is a chimney that is safe to use and still looks like it belongs to the house.
El Monte, in the middle of the San Gabriel Valley
El Monte
El Monte homes date from the 1940s onward, and many still have their original masonry chimneys. When a fireplace has gone unused for a while, we start with a sweep and a camera check, since nests and fallen mortar can block a flue. Then we look at the outside of the stack. Weathered joints near the top are common on chimneys this age, and repointing them to match keeps the brick sound. If the crown is cracked or the cap is missing, those come first. You get a short written report that ranks the work by what matters most for safety.
Altadena, the unincorporated foothill community above Pasadena
Altadena
Altadena has a deep stock of early 1900s masonry homes with original brick chimneys. Since the January 2025 Eaton Fire, our visits here start with a structural look at what is still standing. We note heat damage to the liner, cracked crowns and loose brick. Then we say plainly which chimneys can be restored and which should come down to a sound course.
Glendale, below the Verdugo Mountains
Glendale
Glendale mixes early 20th-century bungalows, Spanish Colonial homes and hillside houses, and many still have original masonry chimneys. On those we look at the joints first, since old lime mortar weathers slowly and unevenly. Repointing to match, a sound crown and a relined flue let an old Glendale chimney keep working for years without a rebuild.
Highland Park, in Northeast Los Angeles along the Arroyo Seco
Highland Park
Highland Park's Craftsman homes date from the 1900s to the 1920s, so their brick chimneys were built before any seismic code. Mortar erosion and cracked crowns are the findings that come up most. We repoint with a soft mix that suits the old brick, rebuild the crown, and reline where the clay tiles have split. Where the brick is sound, the original stack stays.
La Canada Flintridge and the Crescenta Valley
La Canada Flintridge
Many La Canada Flintridge properties have tall chimneys on steep lots, so restoration here starts with safe access. Once we can reach the top, the work is familiar. We repoint weathered courses to match, rebuild or seal the crown, and check the flashing. Custom stone or brick can take time to match, and we tell you that before any work is booked.
neighborhoods across the City of Los Angeles
Los Angeles
The City of Los Angeles covers 469 square miles, and its chimneys range from early brick to factory-built boxes. We take on the masonry ones. The work is the same as in San Marino: match the mortar, repoint to the original joint, fix the crown and reline a cracked flue. We tell you on the first call if your address falls outside our usual route.
Monrovia, from Old Town up to the foothill streets
Monrovia
Monrovia's homes run from the early 1900s to modern builds, and many older ones have original masonry chimneys that call for careful restoration. We match soft mortar to the old brick, reset loose courses and reline cracked clay tile flues. Keeping the original stack is usually possible when the work is done before water gets deep into the brick.
Montrose, in the La Crescenta-Montrose foothill community
Montrose
Homes in Montrose went up largely from the 1920s through the 1960s, with a mix of masonry chimneys and prefabricated fireplaces. Our restoration work centers on the brick ones. We repoint joints that have washed out, repair the crown and replace rusted caps. On a prefab unit we check the chase top and the flue, then tell you whether parts can still be found.
Your town not on the list?
Call with your address. If it is close to our route, we can still look at the chimney.