Sweep & inspection
Caps & crowns
Flue relining
Masonry repair
Gas fireplace serviceLevel 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.
Gelco Chimney Sweep in Atlanta: What to Know First
We provide independent Gelco chimney sweep service in Atlanta, and most standard sweeps are completed in under two hours. You’ll get a written price before we touch the flue, and if we find Gelco-specific problems during the sweep, we show you the camera footage before recommending any additional work. This page is for Atlanta homeowners with a Gelco chimney system who want straight answers about what their setup needs, what it costs, and what actually happens during a sweep. Call (678) 263-7908 for a free estimate.
We are not affiliated with or authorized by Gelco. We’re an independent service provider with deep hands-on experience on Gelco chimney systems across Atlanta, from Buckhead to Grant Park to Decatur.
How Gelco Products Fail – and How We Fix Them
Gelco has supplied chimney liners and components to the Atlanta market for years, and we’ve swept enough of them to know exactly where they wear. Most failures we see are not the liner itself failing. They’re the joints, the cap connections, and the spots where moisture gets in and does slow damage. Here’s what we typically encounter on Gelco systems in Atlanta.
- Gelco stainless liner seam separation at the tee. On older Gelco flexible liners, the seam where the vertical liner meets the tee body can begin to open after years of thermal cycling. Atlanta’s humid springs cause condensation inside the liner, and that moisture sits at the tee and eats away at the connection. We spot this during a sweep camera inspection, and the fix is usually a tee replacement rather than a full reline.
- Cap screen clogging from Atlanta pollen and creosote glaze. Gelco caps with fine mesh screens are common on Atlanta homes, and in March and April, our techs find them nearly welded shut with pine pollen and creosote dust. The symptom is smoke backing into the room or a fireplace that just won’t draw. The fix is a proper cap cleaning, occasionally a cap replacement if the mesh is corroded.
- Connector pipe backpuffing on Gelco inserts. Gelco fireplace inserts installed in masonry fireplaces often show backpuffing when the connector pipe is too short or the damper area wasn’t sealed correctly. Homeowners call us for a sweep, but what they actually need is a sweep plus a Level 2 inspection to confirm the connector is drafting correctly. We don’t sweep over a real draft problem and call it done.
- Damper frame shift on older Gelco masonry installations. We regularly see Gelco dampers in Atlanta homes built in the 1980s and 1990s where the frame has shifted slightly due to humid summers softening mortar. The damper still opens and closes, but it doesn’t seal fully, which lets conditioned air escape and smoke smell drift into the room. A sweep won’t fix that. A damper adjustment or replacement will.
- Glazed creosote buildup on Gelco liners used with vented gas logs. This one surprises people. Vented gas logs produce water vapor, and when that vapor combines with soot in a Gelco liner, it forms a dense, glazed creosote that a standard brush won’t remove. We use chemical treatment followed by rotary cleaning on these jobs, and we document the before and after with our camera so you can see the difference.
Styles & brands we work with
Our Gelco Chimney Sweep Process
We don’t improvise on a Gelco job. Every sweep follows the same sequence, so you know exactly where your money goes.
- 1
Call and price. You reach a live person at (678) 263-7908. We give you a firm price range for the sweep before anyone arrives, based on the type of Gelco system you have. The price we quote is the price we write on your estimate. No surprises at the door.
- 2
Arrival and protection. Our background-checked, uniformed technicians lay drop cloths from the door to the fireplace, and we cover the firebox opening before the brush goes up. Your floors and rugs are not part of the job site.
- 3
Pre-sweep camera inspection. Before we run a brush, we send a camera up the Gelco liner to check for cracks, seam issues, blockages, and creosote thickness. If we find something that changes the job, we stop and show you the footage before we continue. No work happens you haven’t seen justified.
- 4
The sweep itself. We brush the full length of the Gelco flue, clean the smoke shelf, remove debris from the firebox, and clear the damper area. For glazed creosote, we switch to a rotary cleaning head that works the surface without damaging the liner.
- 5
Post-sweep camera verification. The same camera goes back up to confirm the liner is clean from throat to cap. You see the after footage. No convincing required.
- 6
Written report and guarantee. You get a written report with photos, and every repair we complete gets a written guarantee backed by our Kingswell Guarantee. If a covered repair fails, we come back and fix it at no charge inside the guarantee period.
See the difference
Before
After
Before
After
Before
AfterWhat Gelco Chimney Sweep Costs in Atlanta
Most Gelco chimney sweeps in Atlanta run between $189 and $289, depending on the liner length, the amount of creosote buildup, and whether the firebox has excessive debris. If you have glazed creosote, expect to add chemical treatment for roughly $75 to $125. The price moves when we find a hidden issue during the pre-sweep camera inspection: a failing tee connection, a shifted damper, or a cap in need of replacement. We price those separately, in writing, before we do anything.
| Scenario | Typical Range (Atlanta) |
|---|---|
| Standard Gelco sweep, no complications | $189 – $289 |
| Glazed creosote chemical treatment (add-on) | $75 – $125 |
| Cap cleaning or replacement | $85 – $260 |
| Tee replacement on a Gelco liner | $350 – $650 |
| Damper adjustment or replacement | $180 – $450 |
Call (678) 263-7908 for an exact quote. Estimates are free, and the number we give you before the job is the number you’ll see on the invoice when the job is done.
Why Atlanta Homeowners Call Ashby Chimney Atlanta for Gelco Work
Nathan Corliss started working flues and fireboxes two decades ago, and for the last several years, he and his crew have been the ones Atlanta homeowners call when they want the job done right the first time. We show up with the price already written down. We do the inspection before the brush goes up. And we leave the job site cleaner than we found it.
Our 365-Day Done Right Promise means exactly what it says: if the work isn’t done right, we make it right. Repairs are backed by a written guarantee, and if a covered repair fails inside the guarantee period, we come back and fix it at no charge. We stock materials from trusted chimney-trade brands like Gelco, DuraFlex, and HeatShield, so the parts we recommend aren’t whatever happened to be in the van. They’re the right parts for your Atlanta home’s chimney system.
Tell me the price first, then tell me why – that’s the only way Nathan knows how to do it.
FAQs
No. Routine chimney sweeping and inspection are part of normal maintenance for any Gelco system, and using a professional service won’t void your manufacturer’s warranty. We avoid anything that would put a liner at risk, which is why we inspect with a camera before running a mechanical brush up the flue.
If you’re unsure, call (678) 263-7908 and we’ll walk you through what your warranty covers.
Most standard Gelco chimney sweeps are completed in under two hours, and we can usually schedule within a week depending on the season. Fall is our busiest time in Atlanta, so if you’re planning to burn through the winter, booking in September or early October gives you the most flexibility.
We use genuine Gelco parts when they’re the best option for the installation. When a genuine part isn’t available or a quality aftermarket equivalent performs better for your specific setup, we use components from trusted brands like DuraFlex and HeatShield, and we show you what we’re installing and why before we do the work.
If you see a buildup of dark, flaky creosote when you look up the flue, if the fireplace smokes when you light it, or if you notice an odor from the chimney after rain, you’re due for a sweep. An annual sweep is the right cadence for most Atlanta homes that burn wood regularly, even if everything looks fine.
We stop and show you the camera footage before any repair recommendation is made. We’ll tell you plainly what can wait and what can’t, and you get a written price for any repair we suggest. No high-pressure sales, no mystery damage that suddenly requires a full reline. If it needs fixing, you’ll see why on the screen.
Written by Nathan Corliss, Owner, Ashby Chimney Atlanta at Ashby Chimney Atlanta, serving Atlanta and nearby areas.