Gas fireplace service
Sweep & inspection
Caps & crowns
Flue relining
Masonry repairLevel 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.
Why Atlanta Homeowners Choose DuraFlex Chimney Cleaning
Atlanta Duraflex service is what we provide as an independent contractor, not as an authorized DuraFlex dealer, and we’ve been doing it long enough to know the difference matters. Our technicians have rebuilt and serviced hundreds of DuraFlex stainless steel liners across metro Atlanta, giving us hands-on familiarity with the specific ovalization, seam splitting, and creosote adhesion patterns this brand exhibits in our climate and fuel mix. If you have a DuraFlex liner in a Buckhead bungalow or a Druid Hills two-story, call (678) 263-7908 and we’ll give you a written price before any brush touches your flue.
Most Atlanta homeowners only think about scheduling a Chimney Sweep when the temperature drops below 40 and the fireplace suddenly becomes the center of the house again. By then, a DuraFlex liner that sat unused through nine humid months may have collected creosote glaze behind its corrugations, rust on its cap, or a squirrel nest in the offset. We clean what’s there, show you photos of what we found, and fix only what actually needs fixing.
Why Trust Ashby Chimney Atlanta for Your DuraFlex Chimney Cleaning?
Nathan Corliss, our owner, has been working flues and fireboxes for going on two decades. He learned the trade at Los Angeles Trade-Technical College before deciding chimneys suited him better than the California sun, and for the last several years he and our crew have been the ones homeowners call for DuraFlex Chimney Cleaning in Dunwoody, GA when a liner stops drafting right. Nathan’s rule is simple: tell me the price first, then tell me why. That’s how we run every DuraFlex service call.
We know this brand’s quirks because we’ve pulled hundreds of these liners apart. DuraFlex 316L round liners are good products, but they’re not immune to Atlanta’s thermal cycling. We know where the seams fail, why creosote collects behind the corrugations, and when a repair is safe versus when the liner honestly needs to come out. Every job gets a written price before work starts and a written guarantee when it’s done. If a covered repair fails inside the guarantee period, we return at no charge under our 365-Day Done Right Promise. That’s the Kingswell Way: say the price, show up in the window, leave it cleaner, put the guarantee in writing, come back if it fails.
Styles & brands we work with
Common DuraFlex Chimney Cleaning Problems We Fix in Atlanta
- Seam splitting at interlocking corrugations. DuraFlex liners rely on interlocking corrugated seams for flexibility. In Atlanta, where winter cold snaps follow humid summers, thermal expansion cycles stress those seams repeatedly. We see splits most often at short radius offsets, particularly the 15- and 30-degree fittings where flex is the tightest. The symptom is smoke rollout into the room when the fireplace is lit. We repair the damaged section with a certified joint repair, not a full liner swap, unless the split has propagated beyond what’s safe.
- Stage-three creosote glaze behind the corrugations. DuraFlex’s flexible single-wall inner surface has valleys where creosote can bond when draft is weak or the liner is oversized for the appliance. In Atlanta’s humid climate, creosote from occasional cold-snap fires tends to be sticky and glaze-prone. Homeowners in Morningside and Virginia-Highland with older fireplaces often have liners sized for a bigger unit. We remove the glaze mechanically with rotary tools sized for corrugated stainless, never with a generic wire brush that could scar the liner.
- Pinhole corrosion on gas appliance horizontal connector runs. DuraFlex AL 29-4C liners are designed for gas, but horizontal runs can catch condensate in low spots. Atlanta’s humidity makes condensate pooling worse than in drier climates. The pinholes form where acidic condensate sits. We inspect the entire run with a camera before quoting, and if the corrosion is localized, we replace that section with upgraded 316Ti alloy from a quality aftermarket supplier, which handles moisture better than standard 316L.
- Ovalizing under crown weight. We’ve pulled DuraFlex liners in Grant Park and Inman Park that ovalized because the original clay flue tile was missing and no top plate was installed to support the liner. The crown weight pushes down, the liner flexes out of round, and draft collapses. Fix is a proper top plate and support, plus replacing the ovalized section if it’s deformed beyond recovery.
- Gap at the tee connection. This one surprises homeowners. A DuraFlex liner that pulls away from the tee body usually means the tee snout wasn’t secured properly at install, or the liner shifted during a sweep because the tee was never anchored. The gap lets combustion gases into the chase. We see this often in 1980s-2000s suburban Atlanta homes with prefabricated setups where the original installer took shortcuts. We re-anchor the tee, reseal the joint with high-temp sealant, and check the offset alignment.
DuraFlex Parts & Our Repair-vs-Replace Approach
We install genuine DuraFlex replacement fittings, terminations, and sections whenever compatibility matters. A DuraFlex tee body needs a DuraFlex tee snout, and mixing in an off-brand elbow is asking for a gap or a buckling seam. For moisture-exposed components, we often recommend upgraded 316Ti alloy from quality aftermarket suppliers instead of stock 316L. The titanium-stabilized alloy holds up better against Atlanta’s humid air and acidic condensate, and it’s a legitimate service-life upgrade, not an upsell.
Our repair-vs-replace decision is straightforward. We only recommend full liner replacement when seam separation or corrosion exceeds what a certified DuraFlex joint repair can safely restore. We photograph everything with a chimney camera and show you the images before we quote. If the liner can be sectioned and repaired, we tell you that and explain why. If it can’t, we tell you that too, with the pictures to prove it. Call (678) 263-7908 and we’ll walk you through it, camera in hand.
Our DuraFlex Service Process – Step by Step
- 1
Camera diagnosis. Before we touch a brush to your DuraFlex liner, we send a camera down the flue. You see what we see. We’re looking for seam splits, creosote thickness, ovalizing, tee connection gaps, and cap condition. Written findings, written price. No work starts until you approve it.
- 2
Creosote removal and seam inspection. We remove creosote with tools sized for corrugated stainless. For stage-three glaze, we use mechanical rotary cleaning heads that won’t gouge the DuraFlex surface. After cleaning, we reinspect every seam and offset under light.
- 3
Repair or section replacement. If we found a seam split or pinhole corrosion, we replace the damaged section with genuine DuraFlex or upgraded 316Ti aftermarket alloy, as the situation requires. We re-anchor tees, reseal joints, and install top plates where they’re missing.
- 4
Cap and termination check. We verify the cap is the right size and style for your liner, not whatever was on the truck that day. In tree-heavy neighborhoods like Druid Hills, a proper screened cap is the difference between a working flue and a spring squirrel den.
- 5
Draft test and written guarantee. We run a draft test on the repaired liner. Then we hand you the written guarantee covering the work. If it fails inside the guarantee period, we come back at no charge. That’s the 365-Day Done Right Promise, in writing, every time.
See the difference
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After
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AfterDuraFlex Products We Service & Install in Atlanta
We service and install the full range of DuraFlex liner products. That includes the DuraFlex SS 316L Round Liner, the DuraFlex Pro 316Ti Round Liner, the AL 29-4C Oval-to-Round Liner, and the DuraFlex Smooth Wall Liner. We stock common DuraFlex tee bodies, snouts, elbows, and termination caps locally, which means most repairs don’t wait on a parts shipment. For less common configurations, we source directly from our chimney-trade suppliers and usually have parts in hand within a few days.
We Also Service These Brands
We’re not married to one manufacturer. We work with HeatShield resurfacing systems when the clay flue can be saved, and Gelco masonry waterproofing products for exterior chimney work. The right material depends on the chimney, the fuel, and the failure. We’ll tell you which is which and why.
FAQs – DuraFlex Chimney Cleaning Service in Atlanta
Yes, but only with tools sized for flexible stainless liners. A standard wire brush run down a corrugated DuraFlex liner can catch on the seam valleys, and the wrong rotary head can flatten the corrugations enough to weaken the flex points. We use mechanical heads designed for corrugated stainless and chemical glazing removers when the creosote has hardened beyond what mechanical action alone can pull. Atlanta’s humid climate tends to produce sticky, glaze-prone creosote, so we see stage-three buildup more often here than in drier regions. Call (678) 263-7908 and we’ll assess what your liner actually needs.
The two causes we see most in Atlanta are an unsecured tee snout at installation and liner movement during a previous sweep that pulled the joint loose. When the tee isn’t anchored, the liner shifts with thermal expansion and the snout pops free. That gap lets combustion gases into the chase, which is a carbon monoxide risk we don’t ignore. We re-anchor the tee, reseal the joint with high-temp sealant, and check the offset for stress. If the gap has been there a while, we camera the whole liner before deciding whether the section needs replacing.
Not always. A short seam split at a single corrugation can often be repaired with a certified DuraFlex joint repair, which replaces the damaged section without pulling the whole liner. Our rule is simple: if the split is localized and the surrounding steel is sound, we repair. If the split has run, or if corrosion has thinned the surrounding metal, we replace the affected length. We’ll show you the camera images and explain what we’re seeing before we quote anything. Call (678) 263-7908 for an honest assessment, not a hard sell.
DuraFlex liners need a cap that’s sized and terminated correctly for the liner diameter, but the cap itself doesn’t have to be a DuraFlex-branded part. What matters is that it sits properly on the termination, keeps rain out, and screens animals. In Atlanta neighborhoods like Morningside and Druid Hills, squirrel intrusion is a real problem in the spring. We often install multi-flue caps to improve draft while blocking animal entry, especially on older bungalow chimneys where the original cap was a missing afterthought.
Once a year, even if you only burn occasionally. Atlanta’s mild winters mean most fireplaces sit unused for months, and the first cold-snap fire burns off the accumulated creosote from last season. That creosote adheres to the corrugations in a DuraFlex liner and hardens as it reheats. Annual cleaning removes it before it becomes a stage-three glaze. If you burn more than two cords a year, sweep twice. Call (678) 263-7908 and we’ll schedule a camera inspection and cleaning on the same visit.
Most DuraFlex chimney cleanings in Atlanta run between $180 and $340, depending on liner length, the severity of creosote buildup, and whether stage-three glaze requires mechanical removal. A camera inspection adds $50 to $75 if you want documentation, which we recommend for any liner that’s been in service more than five years. If we find damage during cleaning, the repair quote is separate and you approve it before we do the work. Call (678) 263-7908 for an exact written price.
Book Your DuraFlex Service in Atlanta, GA
If your DuraFlex liner hasn’t been cleaned or camera-inspected in the last 12 months, call Ashby Chimney Atlanta at (678) 263-7908. We’ll give you a written price before any work starts, answer with a live person around the clock, and put the guarantee in writing when the job is done. Nathan Corliss and our crew work flues from Buckhead to Grant Park, and we also offer DuraFlex Chimney Cleaning in North Atlanta, GA, showing our work every time.
Written by Nathan Corliss, Owner at Ashby Chimney Atlanta, serving Atlanta since 2002.