Chimney Repairs in Runcorn, Widnes & Cheshire
Chimneys are the first thing on a house to give up. They take the weather from every side, and once the mortar starts going, water gets into the stack and the problem only grows. We repoint chimneys, renew cracked flaunching, re-bed and replace pots, and fit new cowls and caps, all reached from our vehicle-mounted platform. There is no scaffold to hire, nobody walks on your tiles, and you get photos of the stack before and after.
What's Involved
Done Safely From the Platform
- Chimney repointing, raked out and made good
- Cracked and hollow flaunching renewed
- Chimney pots re-bedded, replaced or newly fitted
- New cowls and caps fitted
- Storm-damaged stacks made safe, same day where we can
- Photos of your chimney before and after, taken from the basket
Why chimney mortar gives up before the rest of the house
Your chimney is the most exposed masonry you own. It has weather hitting it from all four sides and no roof over it, and the flaunching on top, the mortar bed the pots sit in, takes rain straight down onto its face. Everything else on the house has something protecting it. The stack has nothing.
So the mortar goes first. Joints rake out, the flaunching cracks and goes hollow, and water starts running into the stack instead of off it. Through a Cheshire winter that water freezes, expands and opens the gaps wider, which is why a chimney that looked passable in September can be visibly crumbling by March. Once pots are sitting in broken flaunching they are only held by their own weight, and it does not take much wind to move one.
The good news is that repointing and re-flaunching is a small job if you catch it. Leave it long enough and the stack itself starts to fail, and at that point you are into a rebuild, which is a different trade and a much bigger bill.
How we repair your chimney
We park the vehicle-mounted platform on your drive or the road outside and set up in minutes. Our operator works level with the stack from the basket, which means he can actually see what he is doing rather than reaching over a ridge from a ladder.
Old mortar is raked out of the joints and the stack is repointed properly. Cracked or hollow flaunching is broken out and renewed so the pots are bedded on something solid again. Pots that have shifted get re-bedded; pots that are cracked get replaced; and if you want a cowl or a cap fitting, to keep rain, birds or draughts out of an unused flue, we fit that at the same time.
Debris comes down with us rather than into your gutters, and you get photos of the stack before we start and after we finish, so you can see what you paid for without going up a ladder yourself.
What we do not take on
We would rather tell you plainly than waste your time. We do not rebuild chimneys, we do not re-tile roofs, we do not replace slipped or broken tiles, and we do not do ridge, verge or lead flashing work. That is a roofer's trade, not ours, and we are not going to pretend otherwise to win a job.
If you ring us with a slipped tile or a leaking roof, we will tell you straight that you need a roofer. What we can do is get that roofer up there safely once you have found one: operated platform hire, no scaffold, set up in minutes. That side of things lives on our commercial and trade hire page.
Why a cherry picker beats scaffolding for chimney work
Chimney jobs are the classic scaffolding trap. The work itself might be half a day, but scaffolding a stack means a crew to build it, days of it sitting in your garden, and a crew to take it down, and you are paying for all three before anyone touches the mortar.
Our platform reaches up to 20m working height with around 13m of outreach, so we can get to a stack on a two or three storey house, and over a conservatory or extension if we need to. Set-up takes minutes, most chimneys are finished the same day, and when we drive away there is nothing left in your garden.
Pricing
One Clear Price, Before We Book
Every job is quoted individually on the size of the house, the state of the roofline and the access, so you only pay for what your home actually needs. Quotes are free and no obligation, the price we agree is the price you pay, and we are not VAT registered, so there is no VAT to add.
Available Across Halton, Cheshire & Merseyside
We bring the platform to your town. Delivery is included in every price.
Other Services
Chimney Repairs FAQs
Common questions about chimney repairs across Halton and Cheshire.
How much does chimney repointing cost?
It depends on the size of the stack, how far the mortar has gone and how easy it is to reach, so we price each chimney on its own rather than quoting a blanket rate. Quotes are free with no obligation, you get one clear price before we book anything in, and we are not VAT registered, so there is no VAT to add.
Do I need scaffolding for chimney repairs?
Not with us. That is the whole point of the platform. Scaffolding a chimney usually means a crew to put it up, days of it standing there and a crew to take it down, all before the actual repair starts. We set up in minutes, work level with the stack from the basket and take everything away the same day.
My chimney pot has come loose in a storm. How quickly can you come out?
Usually the same day or the next. Storm damage is the one thing we drop everything for. We will get the loose pot down or re-secured and clear any debris off the roof so the chimney is safe, then quote the permanent repair separately. You are under no obligation to take it.
Do you rebuild chimneys?
No. We repoint, re-flaunch, re-bed and replace pots and fit cowls and caps. Taking a stack down and rebuilding it is a different job and we do not take it on. If we get up there and find your chimney is past repairing, we will tell you honestly and you will not be charged for finding out.
Do you repair roofs as well?
No. We do chimney work, roof cleaning, gutter cleaning and solar-panel cleaning. We do not replace slipped or broken tiles, re-tile roofs, or do ridge, verge or lead flashing work, and we would rather say so than take the job and let you down. If you have found a roofer and they need to get up there safely, we can provide the operated platform: see our commercial and trade hire page.
How long does chimney repointing last?
Repointed properly with the right mix, you should get decades out of it rather than years. The flaunching on top is the part that weathers hardest, so that is usually the first thing to need looking at again. Every repair we carry out is guaranteed for two years.
Which areas do you cover for chimney repairs?
We are based in Runcorn (WA7), so Runcorn, Widnes and Warrington are quickest, and we cover Frodsham, Helsby, Northwich, St Helens, Liverpool and Chester too. Bringing the platform to you is always included in the price.
Chimney Looking Rough?
Send us a photo of the stack from the ground and we can usually give you a price the same day. Free quote, no obligation, no VAT.