Actual Chimney Specialist LLC

Very professional job.

Very well. Took 45 minutes and left everything very clean

Very good.

I called Tim because of problems with leaks around the chimney that were not solved when a roofer replaced the roof and did a poor job fitting new shingles into old flashing, and due to cracks in the mortar between the stones and loose stones that may have contributed to the leaks. Tim was great to work with. I had to wait a while to get the work done because he was booked up, and also had to reschedule once due to weather, but the job went well and I'm satisfied with the result. It was planned to be 1 days work, but ran over into a couple hours a second day. Tim probably did a bit more work than originally planned due to the condition of the chimney (more loose and deteriorating brick discovered once Tim ground out old mortar and removed the old flashing). He repointed the chimney by grinding out all the old mortar and replacing, reset some stones and replaced some brick than came loose, and replaced all the flashing and a few roofing shingles. He also applied a sealant to the crown. Tim also installed a new cap, and recommended some additional work I could do myself (applying a sealant after the mortar had time to set, he told me what to use and where to get it), and described other work that could be done, including installing a top damper and new stainless flue liner. Tim did a good job, I'm satisfied with the result. The leaks I had seem to be fixed, and the result looks good. The only thing Tim didn't do that he said he would was to use copper flashing. He actually installed aluminum, but it looks good and is installed well, and should hold up. I was happy with Tim's work and would recommend him.

Excellent!!! Tim was very professional and personable. His work was excellent and done in a timely manner. He and his staff were very respectful and took meticulous care of the working area to make sure the house was left as it was as when they arrived. But the most impressive part was how he worked a Saturday two days before Christmas to make sure our fireplace was ready to be used for our family gathering on Christmas. I would recommend him to anyone in a heartbeat.

actual work went very well

Timothy Smith of Actual Chimney Specialist was very personable, polite, considerate and most especially professional and took pride in making sure the job was done correctly. We did get two quotes for the work and the other company, Bill Miles, quoted to only repoint the chimney and then when we said another mason recommended removing courses of brick and rebuilding, at that point he also quoted for that - at 50 % higher. Had we gone with Bill Miles it would most likely have resulted in a return repair after 3-5 years if we only pointed the chimney! Very happy that we went with Actual Chimney Specialist. It is a family business that you can appreciate knowing that there still are tradesman who take pride in doing a good job. Tim has an app, as well as emails you, to provide notification of when he is coming to quote as well as perform the job. He was punctual and arrived the days he said he would to do the job; amazingly he timed it just right with all the rain we have been having. The worksite was neat. He had to remove a wasp's nest prior to beginning the job and asked for wasy spray; which he then replaced with a new can. He said he normally carries it, but had forgotten to replace it in his truck. He power washed the chimney and it looks great. We highly recommend Actual Chimney Specialist. I gave him a B for responsiveness because he did not return one of my calls for four days and one of my husband's calls he never returned. He apologized and said he was out of town.

Great! No surprises. Would hire again

He is a really nice guy. He is going to come back and do a chimney cap for me. He'll be back when the rain stops as long as he does it before it snows.

This is an excellent small company. Tim, the owner, responded quickly to my call. He came and inspected the chimney. He actually went up on the roof and took pictures. He wrote a proposal to rebuild the chimney which was considerably less than one from another company. He explained he would use scaffolding to get to the chimney and plywood to protect the slate roof. His wife called and scheduled a date about three weeks after the proposal. Tim and his helper came when scheduled. They took down the old chimney and built a new one with new flashing and a concrete cap in one long day. The next day they dismantled the scaffolding and cleaned up. Everything went smoothly

unknown

It was great dealing with Tim from Actual Chimney.  We do not use our fireplace on a daily basis so we like to have it cleaned every couple years for preventative maintenance.  Basically what I look for in a company is good customer service, dependability and of course a reasonable price for the required work.  Actual Chimney provided all three.  Tim is very easy to deal with and personable.  It was simple to make an appointment, Tim called the morning of the appointment to confirm and arrived on time.  The work was completed to my satisfaction and the area was spotless. Tim spent some extra time discussing the condition of my chimney, with pics, and provided some ideas for future maintenance.  Actual Chimney also accepts credit cards which is an added bonus since almost no other chimney sweep service on Angie's List does accept credit cards.  Who can't use some extra miles or points?  I plan to use Actual Chimney for all our future fireplace/chimney needs.

The guys were very professional and thoroughly cleaned the chimney and firebox. They left no debris or dirt anywhere in our house. We were very pleased with their work.

unknown

Tim and his crew were excellent throughout the full day that it took to complete the work. They were punctual, efficient and professional, they answered our questions and left a spotless work site.  The inserts, caps and other hardware they used in the installation were all of high quality. Tim made sure that we were pleased with his work and took the time to answer our questions on the use of the insert. Both Tim and his help were good-natured and easy to deal with.
Given our unqualified positive experience with Actual Chimney Specialist, we will continue to use their services for cleaning and maintenance our liners.

unknown

The job took just under a day and a half to complete.  The work was excellent despite the chimney being in an difficult place to work in.  Tim and his helper Don arrived on time and were very courteous and professional.  We could tell by the way Tim carefully placed and leveled each brick that he truly loves what he does and is an expert at it.  
     Tim provided us with requested insurance information and a contract with the specifics of the job itemized.
The result is that our chimney looks great and we were very pleased with the work Actual Chimney Specialists did.
We recommend Tim's company highly.

It went exceptionally well.  Tim, Don and TJ were professional, accommodating, and really, really happy!  This crew are great to work with, even when things go wrong.
We have two chimneys going up through two parts of our house.  One was crumbling (180 years old!), so we had to take it all the way down.  Tim then cleaned the hole out, poured a new foundation and built the new fireplace and  chimney from the ground up.  He was extremely enthusiastic - Tim has a real passion for his work.  He offered suggestions which we loved (and would never have thought of), and was excited to reuse some of the parts form the old chimney (at our request), including some of the antique brick.
The work was, at times, in pretty tough conditions.  The house is under construction, and was without water for part of the job, meaning that Tim and Don had to drive over to this house to fill buckets of water.  It was also EXTREMELY cold - temperatures below 0 with heavy winds - but Tim never complained.  It really was a joy - in fact, a treat, to work with them.
The fireplace and chimney are beautiful.  We made our first (small) fire in it last night, and I look forward to enjoying it for years to come.
I can't recommend Actual Chimney highly enough.  What a great experience it was working with Tim.

unknown

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the young man was courteous and friendly. work was preformed effeciently and neatly (blankets laid to protect floor). not a speck of dust left behind

unknown

For the initial quote they did a very in depth inspection of the chimney both from the roof and the basement of the house.  They walked me through the steps of what would be needed to be done for the repair and explained it in terms that I could understand.  The day of the work they arrived before the sun came up and worked nonstop past 5 PM to complete the job in one day.  The staff were very friendly and professional and did a beautiful job.  The entire job sight was completely cleaned up so that you would never know that they were there.  The quoted price was exactly what was charged the day of the service.  Overall extremely happy with the service they provided, friendly, professional, and very skilled at their trade.  I would recommend them highly for any chimney job that you might have.  Great guy to do business with.

Very professional, on time, fast, exceptional quality and clean. The chimney work has been admired by our neighbors and one even asked Tim to qoute on their chimney.