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.
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AfterFamco Chimney Liner & Rebuild in Quincy: What to Know First
Famco chimney liner and rebuild work in Quincy typically runs $2,200 to $6,800 depending on liner length, flue condition, and how much masonry needs rebuilding. Most Famco liner replacements take one full day; partial rebuilds run two to three days. We quote a flat price before any tool comes off the truck, and we’ll tell you plainly if the liner can wait another season. Call (781) 277-4630 for a free estimate.
This page is for Famco owners in Quincy who’ve been told they need a new liner or a rebuild and want the straight story on what that actually involves. If you own a Famco fireplace, stove, or insert and the chimney behind it is the problem, this is the page for you.
How Famco Products Fail - and How We Fix Them
Famco builds solid equipment, but the chimney attached to it ages on its own schedule. Here’s what we see on Quincy roofs week after week.
- Famco stainless steel liners corroding at the tee connection. We see this mostly on Famco inserts and freestanding stoves installed in exterior chimneys along the Quincy shoreline. Salt air works its way into the tee cap joint where condensation sits, and rust starts where you can’t see it. We replace the liner section and re-seal the joint with high-temp silicone rated for continuous flue gas exposure.
- Flexible liner kinking above the damper frame on Famco insert installs. Famco’s flexible liners are good material, but when installers cut the liner too short and pull it tight through the damper opening, it kinks. That kink becomes a creosote trap. We pull the liner, measure properly, and run a new one with the right insulation wrap so it drafts the way it should.
- Mortar crown cracking around Famco chimney caps, letting water into the flue chase. The crown cracks, water gets in behind the cap flashing, and the freeze-thaw cycle through Quincy winters turns a hairline crack into a spalled brick face. We rebuild the crown with a proper overhang and drip edge, then re-bed the Famco cap so water sheds off instead of pooling.
- Flue tile spalling behind Famco masonry fireplaces after years of hot fires. Famco firebox components hold up fine, but the clay flue tile behind them does not. Hot fires followed by cold Quincy nights cause the tile to flake and delaminate. We break out the damaged section and either sleeve it with a properly sized stainless liner or do a partial rebuild if the tile loss has compromised the chimney structure.
- Improperly sized liners on Famco freestanding stoves causing poor draft and back-puffing. This one is common: an installer matches the liner to the stove collar without accounting for the chimney’s effective height and cross-sectional area. The stove smokes, the glass soots up, and the owner blames the stove. We recalculate the liner size for the actual run from the Famco appliance to the termination, and replace it with the right diameter.
Our Famco Chimney Liner & Rebuild Process
Here’s how a Famco liner or rebuild job goes with us, from the first call to the final inspection.
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You call (781) 277-4630. A live person answers. Wendell or one of his crew asks what you’re seeing: smoke in the house, water stains, cracked brick, or a failed inspection.
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We inspect the chimney with a camera. The camera goes up through the flue, down from the top, and behind the Famco appliance if we can get to it. You see the footage yourself, that day, on our screen.
- 3
We give you a plain-English verdict and a flat price. If the liner has three more seasons in it, we’ll say so. If it needs to be replaced, we’ll show you exactly why on the footage and quote the full job before anything starts.
- 4
We decide on parts together. For Famco work, we typically install a quality stainless liner from DuraFlex, Copperfield, or Gelco. We’re an independent Famco service provider, not a factory shop, so we use the liner that best fits your chimney, not whichever brand the distributor put on sale that month.
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We do the work in one to three days. Liner replacement is usually one day. Partial rebuilds of the crown, shoulder, or top courses run two to three. We tarp the work area, protect the floors, and leave the roof cleaner than we found it.
- 6
We test the draft, re-inspect with the camera, and film the finished result. You get the footage and our write-up. Then the 90-Day Done Right Promise kicks in: if anything is not right, one call brings us back at no additional cost.
What Famco Chimney Liner & Rebuild Costs in Quincy
Here are honest numbers for the Famco jobs we see in Quincy. These are real ranges, not phone quotes that change at the door.
- Famco stainless steel liner replacement (single story, straight flue): $2,200 to $3,400
- Famco liner replacement on a two-story or offset chimney: $3,400 to $4,800
- Liner replacement plus partial rebuild (top 8 to 12 courses): $4,800 to $6,400
- Full chimney rebuild from the roofline up: $6,400 to $9,800 depending on brick match and access
- Liner repair (isolated section, no full replacement): $600 to $1,400
What moves the price: roof pitch and access, how tall the chimney runs, whether the existing liner can be extracted or has to be abandoned in place, and whether the masonry needs matching brickwork. We quote the job flat, in writing, before we start. Call (781) 277-4630 for a free estimate. And remember: $40 off any repair over $200, and 10% off always for seniors and veterans.
Why Quincy Homeowners Call Top Hat Chimney for Famco Work
Top Hat Chimney has been running Quincy streets since 1999. Wendell Pike puts his name on every job, and his license number is published for anyone who wants to check. The 90-Day Done Right Promise is in writing on every single job. We answer the phone around the clock with a live person, not a voicemail box or a call center.
We know Famco equipment and we know the other brands too: DuraFlex, HeatShield, and Gelco liners go into these same Quincy chimneys, so when we recommend one over another, it’s because we’ve seen how each holds up in coastal Massachusetts weather. The sweep who shows up at your door is background-checked, uniformed, and has a real arrival window. If it slips, we call. That’s the whole story.
Frequently Asked Questions
A properly installed stainless liner on a Famco appliance typically lasts 15 to 25 years in Quincy’s climate, but exterior chimneys near the coast can see corrosion at the tee connection as early as year 10. Annual inspection with a camera catches it before it becomes a rebuild. Call (781) 277-4630 and we’ll take a look.
Usually not. Famco fireboxes and inserts are built to outlast multiple liner replacements. If the chimney masonry spalls or the crown fails, we can rebuild the chimney structure while keeping your Famco appliance in place, as long as the firebox itself is sound. We’ll show you the verdict on camera footage before recommending anything.
Yes. Quincy has a lot of older colonial-style chimneys with brick that is no longer manufactured. We keep relationships with salvage yards in the region and can typically match color, texture, and size within a half-shade. A partial rebuild blends into the existing chimney better than most people expect, and we’ll show you the brick options before we lay a single course.
As an independent Famco service provider, we’re not bound to factory parts. Most of the Famco liners in Quincy chimneys were aftermarket stainless liners from the start, installed by local installers using DuraFlex, Copperfield, or Gelco material. We choose the liner that fits your flue and your Famco appliance’s draft requirements, not the one that pays the best wholesale margin. You’ll see the exact product, price, and warranty before we install anything.
Most Famco liner replacements are scheduled within five to seven business days and done in a single day. During October and November, when everyone in Quincy wants their chimney checked before burning season, it can run a week or two longer. Call (781) 277-4630 and we’ll give you a real arrival window, not a four-hour range that slips anyway.
A cracked or perforated liner lets flue gas and heat reach the surrounding masonry, and in an older Quincy chimney with unparged mortar joints, that can mean a chimney fire or carbon monoxide entering the house. Not every liner crack is an emergency. Some can wait a season. But we need to see it on camera to tell you which one you have. Free estimate, honest answer: (781) 277-4630.
Written by Wendell Pike, Owner, Top Hat Chimney at Top Hat Chimney, serving Quincy and nearby areas.