Kirkland, King County
Fixing the flashing around a Kirkland chimney runs $375 to $1,500. Resealing counter flashing that has worked loose from the mortar joint sits at the lower figure; tearing out and replacing the step flashing, counter flashing and a missing cricket on a wide chimney sits at the upper one. We confirm the water is really coming in at the flashing before we quote, because a cracked crown can leave the very same stain on your ceiling.
Typical investment
$375–$1,500
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 Kirkland home — we'll point you to the right fix.
What we do
The same crew, the same written quote — for Kirkland homes.
Level 1, or a Level 2 when needed, which means a video camera travels the full flue
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Rotary or rod brushing of the full flue, with the hearth covered and a HEPA vacuum running
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Replacement of cracked or spalled brick with a close color match
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Camera scan and flue measurement before anything is ordered
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Measurement of each flue and of the crown before fitting
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Burner, pilot assembly and thermocouple or thermopile cleaned and checked
Learn moreRanges shown for orientation — the exact figure is written up on-site, after the inspection.
Flashing is the sheet metal that spans the seam between a roof, which shifts with the house, and a masonry chimney, which stays put. On a lot of chimneys it was originally sealed with caulk or roofing cement that has long since dried out, and the joint has been opened and closed by decades of seasonal movement. When a roof is replaced, the old flashing is sometimes reused rather than renewed, which shortens its life further.
December is Kirkland's windiest month on WeatherSpark's record, with average hourly speeds near 5.1 mph and a breezier season lasting from mid-October to late April. For the lowlands between the mountains, the Western Regional Climate Center describes wet-season winds that are mostly out of the south or southwest.
Rain driven sideways by those winds hits the chimney face and runs down into the flashing joint, rather than simply falling on the roof around it. That is why leaks here so often show up after blustery storms, and why we pay the closest attention to the side of the chimney facing the weather.
Oregon State University Extension spells out two roof-moss hazards: moss can raise asphalt shingles enough for water to get beneath them, and zinc sulfate treatments corrode copper flashing, gutters and downspouts. WSU Extension observes that the eaves are where most moss trouble begins.
Behind a chimney, needles and moss pile up against the flashing and hold water there. We clear that pocket as part of the repair, and if your flashing is copper we will tell you which moss products to avoid so the new metal is not eaten away.
Every chimney flashing repair we do in Kirkland includes:
Smoke coming back into the room, or a smell that won't go? Book the inspection first.
Book nowA typical Kirkland flashing call begins with a brown ring on a ceiling or a damp patch in an attic next to the chimney, usually noticed after a windy storm rather than a gentle rain. The water may drip several feet away from the spot where it gets in, so we trace it from the roof and the attic before recommending anything.
We look from the roof and, where possible, from the attic, and use a hose test when the source is unclear, before recommending any repair.
Sound metal with failed sealant gets reset and resealed. Rusted, torn or improperly lapped metal is replaced, and the quote says which applies.
Each step piece gets lapped under its own course of shingles. Over those, the counter pieces are let into a sawn groove in the mortar, never stuck to the face of the brick with sealant.
Water is run over the finished area while someone watches from below, and you receive photos of each layer as it went in.
WeatherSpark's figures put Kirkland's wet season at roughly 6.8 months, during which any given day has better than a one-in-three chance of rain. Winter air in the region's interior valleys runs near 87 percent relative humidity before sunrise in January, according to the Western Regional Climate Center.
A flashing joint that fails in July may go unnoticed until October. Over the wet months that follow, even a small gap lets water in on dozens of days, and the damp attic air keeps the wood around it from drying out between storms.
What this work is quoted at for Kirkland homes — the exact figure comes from the $99 on-site inspection, credited toward the work.
| Service | Price in Kirkland | What that covers |
|---|---|---|
| Chimney Flashing Repair | $375–$1,500 | Reseal at the low end, full flashing replacement at the high |
| Chimney Sweep | $189–$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 Kirkland. 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.
Revised modeling by Washington's Emergency Management Division gives the southern Whidbey Island fault a possible magnitude of 7.5. USGS researchers had already described that fault in 1996 as able to produce large earthquakes that threaten the Puget Lowland.
In shaking, a heavy masonry chimney and a light wood-framed roof sway at different rates, with only the metal flashing tying one to the other. After any quake strong enough to rattle dishes, it is worth having the flashing and the chimney's connection to the house looked at before the next heavy rain.
Kirkland is an 18-square-mile city on the east shore of Lake Washington, on Lake Washington, with homes with a median build year of 1984, more than a third of them put up in the 1960s and 1970s. We work every part of it — Houghton, Juanita, Rose Hill, Finn Hill, Kingsgate included.
KirklandKing County, WA · 47.677, -122.206
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.
$375 to $1,500. Resealing and resetting sound flashing is near the bottom; full replacement on a large chimney with a new cricket is near the top.
Under section R1003.20 of the state's 2021 residential code, yes if the stack measures over 30 inches across, parallel to the ridge, and sits below the ridge rather than straddling it. That little saddle splits the water coming down the roof so it cannot pool against the brick.
Water can also enter through a cracked crown, porous brick or an uncapped flue and show up in the same place. The inspection is how we sort out which one it is.
A $99 on-site inspection, a written quote before any work, and photos of every item we touch.
