Phinney Ridge, King County
A chimney cap fitted on Phinney Ridge runs from $265 to $850. One stainless cap clamped to a single flue tile is the lower figure. The upper one covers a wide cap spanning two or three flues, or a piece made to measure for a top that no stock size fits. Nothing is ordered until the flue has been measured from the roof.
Typical investment
$265–$850
Book an inspection
Book your $99 inspection
$99 plus tax, deducted when you approve the repair
Not sure where to start
Pick what you're seeing at your Phinney Ridge home — we'll point you to the right fix.
What we do
The same crew, the same written quote — for Phinney Ridge homes.
A Level 1 review of everything reachable, raised to a Level 2 camera scan when a question stays open
Learn more
The whole flue brushed, using heads picked for the liner's size and shape
Learn more
A photo assessment that distinguishes surface wear from structural damage
Learn more
Camera survey and measurements taken before any liner is chosen
Learn more
Glass removed, cleaned and checked for a sound gasket
Learn more
Crown and all four sides photographed before any work
Learn moreRanges shown for orientation — the exact figure is written up on-site, after the inspection.
Woodland Park borders the neighborhood to the southeast, and it exists because of the man the ridge is named for. In 1889 Guy Phinney bought 179 wooded acres off Green Lake's southwest corner and made an estate of them; Seattle purchased the land from his widow in 1899. HistoryLink adds that in 1900 most of the ridge itself was still forest. Plenty of tall trees remain in the park and along the streets, and falling trees and broken limbs account for a large part of storm damage, by the city's own windstorm profile. An open flue under branches collects whatever comes down.
Every chimney cap installation we do in Phinney Ridge includes:
Smoke coming back into the room, or a smell that won't go? Book the inspection first.
Book nowA cap also has to let the fire breathe. If the cap carries a spark arrestor, its mesh is fixed by R1003.9.2 in Seattle's residential code: a sphere of 1/2 inch must not get through, one of 3/8 inch must, and the open area that remains has to be no smaller than four flue outlets put together. A cap that is too small for the flue fails that test and can make a fireplace smoke. Washington's State Fire Marshal counts a cap on the chimney as one of the basics for a home with a fireplace, in the same list as glass doors or a screen and alarms that work.
The Seattle Office of Emergency Management notes that wind accelerates over hills and ridges, and it reports the design figure the building code sets for new construction: a gust of 85 mph lasting three seconds. A chimney cap is not a structure, but it sits at the highest and most exposed point of the house, and on a ridge-top lot it is the first part the wind reaches.
That is why a cap here is screwed or anchored down and never just set over the tile. Material matters as well, because the cap spends half the year wet. A Seattle chimney company's published figures give stainless steel 15 to 20 years or more and galvanized steel only 5 to 10. A rusted galvanized cap fails at the fasteners first, and that is usually the one found on the lawn after a storm.
Up on the roof, every flue is measured and the top photographed, which lets you judge its present state for yourself.
One flue, several flues, or a cap made to order: every option carries its price before you choose.
The old hardware comes off and the flue opening is cleaned of debris.
The cap is fastened, tugged from each side, and the damper is opened from below to confirm a clear draft.
What this work is quoted at for Phinney Ridge homes — the exact figure comes from the $99 on-site inspection, credited toward the work.
| Service | Price in Phinney Ridge | What that covers |
|---|---|---|
| Chimney Cap Installation | $265–$850 | Stainless cap fitted; multi-flue and custom at the top |
| Chimney Sweep | $209–$459 | Full flue swept, Level 1 inspection included |
| Chimney Inspection | $99 plus tax | Level 1 visual; Level 2 adds a full camera scan |
| Chimney Relining | From $1,900 | Full-length stainless liner, sized to the appliance |
| Chimney Repair | From $425 | Masonry repair — brick and mortar, scoped after diagnosis |
Ranges are what these jobs are quoted at in Phinney Ridge. The exact figure is set on site after a $99 inspection (credited toward the job if you go ahead), and you approve it before any work starts.
Phinney Ridge is a ridge-top neighborhood between Aurora Avenue N and 8th Avenue NW, named for Guy Phinney, with houses that followed the Phinney Avenue streetcar north between 1906 and 1909.
Phinney RidgeKing County, WA · 47.679, -122.355
Before and after
Illustrations of what each repair changes on a typical chimney — not photos of a specific job.
Before
After
Before
After
Before
After
Four steps, each one on paper — so you always know what happens next.
Choose a genuine opening on the crew's calendar. Confirmation is immediate.
Liner, crown, cap, flashing and masonry examined in order — each finding photographed.
One document, plain numbers, covering only the work your chimney genuinely needs.
The repair is completed, then handed over with before-and-after photos of every item.
Between $265 and $850 installed. The number of flues under the cap and whether a standard size fits are what set the price.
One Seattle chimney company publishes its own estimates: copper at 30 years and up, stainless steel somewhere past 15 to 20, galvanized at 5 to 10. We install stainless as standard for that reason.
Yes. If you would like the whole chimney examined at the same visit, the inspection is $99 plus tax, an amount that goes toward any work you approve from the quote.
A standard cap keeps out rain, animals and debris. Persistent downdrafts on a windy site sometimes call for a wind-directional cap, which we can price once we have seen the roof.
A $99 on-site inspection, a written quote before any work, and photos of every item we touch.
