Level 1 sweep and inspection to the NFPA 211 annual standard - flue, crown, cap, and flashing checked and photographed
Chimney sweep logs do not sweep chimneys. They loosen some creosote - which then falls where a brush and vacuum still have to collect it.
Fast, Reliable Chimney Cap & Crown Across Westfield
A chimney cap and crown in Westfield do one hard job: they close the top of the flue system against water, wind, and animals so your chimney keeps pulling smoke out instead of pushing it back in. For most Westfield homes built before 1930, the cap is gone entirely or rusted through, and the crown is cracked to the point where water is already inside the masonry. At Emberly Chimney Cleaners, we inspect, document, and repair caps and crowns the same way every time: a camera down the flue, a written price before work starts, and a photo record when it’s done. Call (980) 580-8641 for a free estimate anywhere in Westfield.
Why Emberly Chimney Cleaners Is Westfield’s Preferred Chimney Cap & Crown Company
Westfield’s housing stock is unusually demanding for cap and crown work. The city’s older brick chimneys took decades of freeze-thaw cycling in a valley that catches every westerly front coming out of the Berkshires. We know what that does to a mortar crown because we’ve seen it on chimneys from the Whip City core up to the ranch houses off Route 20. Our Chimney Cap & Crown team works with Crown Repair and Custom Cap jobs across the whole city, and we keep our pricing in writing before anyone touches your roof.
Since 2009, we’ve inspected and cleaned over 38,000 chimneys, and every single visit includes a documented photo record under Clause 4 of the Haven Standard. That’s not an optional add-on. You walk away with pictures of what we found, a written scope of work, and a written warranty. If it’s not done right, our 365-Day Done Right Promise means we make it right. Corrine Halstead leads our team, and the license number for every tech is on the page, not hidden behind a voicemail tree.
Our Chimney Cap & Crown Services in Westfield

Cap Installation
A properly sized cap isn’t a lid you bolt on top. It’s a vented assembly that blocks rain and animals while letting exhaust leave at the right velocity. We install stainless caps from Copperfield and Famco, sized to your flue’s actual interior dimensions, not guessed from the outside. For Westfield’s wind corridor, standard mesh caps often make downdraft worse by deflecting airflow in unpredictable ways. We measure the flue, check the draft, and select a cap with the right chimney height and screen pattern for the valley’s westerly flow.
Cap Replacement
Most cap replacements in Westfield start because the old one is rusted through, missing, or was installed incorrectly on a flue that never got a camera inspection. A cap that collapses into the flue is a fire hazard and a draft blocker at the same time. We remove the old cap, clean the flue opening, and install a replacement that matches the chimney’s venting function. If your home has an oversized 10-inch clay tile from the oil-heat era and you’ve added a pellet or gas insert, the old cap can actively harm draft. We’ll tell you what you actually need, and we’ll show you the camera footage to prove it.
Crown Repair
The crown is the concrete or mortar slab that seals the top of the chimney around the flue. In Westfield, crowns rarely last more than 15 to 20 years before freeze-thaw cycles crack them at the corners. Once cracked, water gets behind the flue tile and into the smoke chamber, accelerating spalling and liner deterioration. We rebuild crowns with a proper overhang and drip edge so water sheds away from the masonry, not into it. Every crown repair in Westfield gets a Crown Coating after the rebuild, because bare mortar in this climate fails too fast without it.
Crown Coating
A crown coating is a flexible, weather-resistant membrane applied over the cured crown. It bridges hairline cracks and keeps water out for a decade or more when installed over a sound base. Gelco and HeatShield produce the coatings we use, selected because they handle the Pioneer Valley’s aggressive freeze-thaw cycle better than plain mortar. A coating is not a substitute for a crown that’s already crumbled. We’ll tell you plainly if yours is salvageable, with photos to back it up.
What happens when you call
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A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
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You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
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A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
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You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Before
AfterTrusted Brands We Service in Westfield
We work with materials from Copperfield, DuraFlex, and HeatShield. These are the same brands we’ve used across thousands of chimney repairs, and we stock common sizes locally so Westfield homeowners aren’t waiting weeks on a backorder. If you bring us a competitor’s written quote, we’ll give you a Free Second Opinion on it. That’s standard practice here, not a promotion.
Common Chimney Cap & Crown Problems We See in Westfield Homes

- Cracked crowns from valley freeze-thaw cycles. Westfield’s location at the base of the Berkshire foothills means winter temperatures swing above and below freezing more often than in eastern Massachusetts. Each cycle forces water deeper into the crown until the mortar finally spalls and crumbles away.
- Wind-corridor downdrafts that push smoke back inside. The Westfield River valley funnels westerly air straight through the city. Homes near the Whip City core and along Route 20 experience chronic backdrafting when a cap is missing, undersized, or the wrong style for the prevailing wind direction.
- Oversized oil-era flues with mismatched caps. Homes from the 1940s through 1960s often have 10-inch or larger clay tiles. When today’s homeowner installs a pellet or gas insert rated for a 6-inch liner, the cap needs to be reworked. A cap alone won’t fix the draft loss, and we’ll be honest about when a liner makes more sense.
- Original unlined or single-wythe flues with no crown protection. In Westfield’s late-Victorian and Colonial Revival housing stock, many brick chimneys were built for coal and never lined. Once the crown fails, water pours directly into the masonry, and the flue deteriorates from the inside out. These jobs need a camera inspection before any cap or crown decision gets made.
Pricing for Chimney Cap & Crown in Westfield, MA
We Also Serve Cities Near Westfield

If you’re in West Springfield, Chicopee, Agawam, or Holyoke, our crews cover those areas as well. This page focuses on Chimney Cap & Crown in Westfield, but the same camera-first inspection and written pricing apply across the Pioneer Valley.
Serving Westfield, MA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Westfield area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs - Chimney Cap & Crown in Westfield

How does Westfield’s western wind corridor affect my chimney cap choice?
Westfield’s position at the mouth of the Westfield River valley means westerly winds hit the chimney at higher sustained speeds than in sheltered Connecticut River Valley towns like Agawam or Chicopee. A standard mesh cap can actually amplify downdraft by creating turbulence at the chimney opening. We size and select caps specifically for the wind direction and chimney height on your particular roof. Call (980) 580-8641 and we’ll assess your chimney’s exposure during the estimate.
My 1920s Westfield home has an original unlined flue with a cracked crown. Can a crown coating fix it, or do I need a rebuild?
If the crown is cracked but structurally intact with most of its mass still in place, a Crown Coating can seal those cracks and buy you a decade or more. If the crown has spalled away in chunks and water is already running behind the flue tile, the crown needs a full rebuild before any coating goes on. The only way to know is to see the crown up close, and we’ll show you photo evidence of exactly what we found before recommending either path.
My Westfield house has a 10-inch clay flue from the oil-heat era, and I just installed a pellet insert rated for a 6-inch liner. Do I still need a cap change?
Yes, probably. The old cap was sized for the 10-inch clay tile, and now you’ve got a much smaller liner inside it. The cap’s mesh and venting pattern no longer match the flue’s actual diameter. That mismatch creates draft loss and accelerates second-degree creosote glazing. We’ll check the flue with a camera, confirm the liner situation, and install a cap that matches the working diameter. If the liner itself needs to be replaced, we’ll show you why on camera before quoting anything.
How often should I have the chimney crown inspected on an older Westfield brick chimney?
Every three years for homes in Westfield with brick chimneys over 60 years old. The freeze-thaw cycle in this valley works on mortar joints year-round, and a crown that looked fine in the fall can start cracking by spring. If your chimney faces west or northwest toward the Berkshires, check it even more often. The inspection takes about 15 minutes on the roof, and you’ll walk away with photos either way. Call (980) 580-8641 to book it.
Can you install a multi-flue cap on my Westfield two-family without relining both flues?
Yes, in most cases. A multi-flue cap spans the full width of the chimney and covers both flue openings with a single assembly. It’s common on Westfield’s two- and three-family homes, where two separate boilers or furnaces vent through one brick stack. We’ll need to measure both flue openings and verify there’s no splitting between the flues. If the flue tiles themselves are deteriorated beyond use, we’ll tell you before installing anything. The cap is not a fix for a failing liner.
Get Your Westfield Chimney Checked the Emberly Way
We come out to Westfield, put a camera down the flue, and hand you written pricing before any work begins. You’ll get a photo record when the job is done, and our 365-Day Done Right Promise stands behind every cap install and crown repair. Corrine Halstead and the Emberly team are ready to schedule your inspection. Call (980) 580-8641 for a free estimate today.
Written by Corrine Halstead, Owner at Emberly Chimney Cleaners, serving Westfield since 2009.





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