Properly maintaining your chimney, masonry, and venting is important no matter where you live. But if you’re a homeowner in Ankeny, Iowa, maintenance is easy because you have top-notch customer service and quality workmanship at your fingertips. Here at Top Notch Chimney Sweep & Services, we offer comprehensive services, including: Chimney Sweeping, Chimney Inspection, Gas Log Service, Chimney Caps & Dampers, Chimney Crown Repair, Factory Fireplace Repair, Minor Masonry Repairs, Chimney Relining, HeatShield®, Waterproofing, Flashing Repair, Air Duct Cleaning, Dryer Vent Cleaning.
Whether you need us to perform your annual chimney sweeping services, repair leaking flashing, reline your flue, rebuild your chimney, or do masonry repairs, you can schedule with confidence. Our technicians are certified by the Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA) and work diligently to provide the best service and produce the best work on every service call.
We travel throughout the Ankeny area, from I-35 to Route 69, and can be there for you with expert advice and professional service when you need us most. Our goal is to make chimney and venting care as easy and as hassle-free, mess-free, and stress-free as possible for our customers in Ankeny and beyond. Whatever your chimney or venting needs, the pros at Top Notch Chimney Sweep & Services can help.
Why Rely On Top Notch For Your Chimney, Venting Needs?
Here at Top Notch, we know that you have choices when it comes to chimney and venting care, but you want the best. As members of the National Chimney Sweep Guild (NCSG), we’re continuously learning and improving, so that we can offer our clients the best and most reliable chimney and venting care. If you’re not happy when we’re finished performing a service, neither are we. In fact, we’ll work to make sure that you’re satisfied and educated at the end of our service. But it’s not just our training and dedication to top level customer care that makes us Ankeny’s #1 choice, it’s our equipment. We use Chim-Scan closed-circuit internal evaluation systems to look at your systems from top to bottom and provide you with detailed information on the condition and findings. We never make recommendations for repairs that we can’t back up with images and data, so you won’t have to wonder where our technicians are coming from when they make suggestions. All of our recommendations are made with the same goal: to keep you and your home as safe and efficient as possible.
Top Notch Chimney Sweep & Services is here to help you with all your chimney services. Just give us a call to schedule your appointment with one of our skilled technicians.
In addition to parks and recreation opportunities, Altoona offers a racetrack, casino and Adventureland Amusement Park. It’s another one of our valued service communities.
How Iowa Weather Wears on a Chimney
A chimney stands out in the open year-round, taking wind, rain, snow and summer heat with no break. In Central Iowa the hardest stretch is late fall through early spring, when temperatures swing above and below freezing again and again. Moisture that soaks into brick and mortar freezes, expands and slowly pushes the masonry apart.
Spring storms add another layer. Wind-driven rain hits the crown and the flashing from the side, and a small crack or lifted edge is all it takes to let water inside. In winter, ice can build up along the roofline around the chimney and hold water against the flashing. Our leak repair and waterproofing work is aimed at stopping that water before it reaches the liner, the framing or your ceilings.
Wood-Burning and Gas Fireplaces Need Different Care
A wood-burning fireplace or stove leaves behind creosote, a flammable residue that coats the inside of the flue. How fast it builds depends on the wood you burn, how often you burn it and how well the system drafts. Regular sweeping removes it before it becomes a fire risk, and an annual inspection catches damage the heat may have caused.
Gas fireplaces and gas logs do not make creosote, but they are not maintenance-free. They still produce carbon monoxide that has to vent properly, and the venting can be blocked by nests, debris or a damper stuck closed. We check the burner, the pilot, the connections and the vent path, and look for soot buildup that points to a problem with how the fuel is burning.
Buying or Selling a Home in Ankeny
When a house changes hands, NFPA 211 calls for a Level 2 chimney inspection. That includes a camera look through the inside of the flue, which a general home inspection usually does not cover. It gives buyers a clear picture of what they are taking on and gives sellers a chance to fix issues before they come up at the closing table.
If you want an early opinion before scheduling, our virtual chimney assessment lets you send a few photos for our technicians to review. It does not replace an inspection, but it can help you plan. Repairs found during a Level 2 inspection are handled by our repair crew.
Book Early to Beat the Fall Rush
For routine, non-emergency service, our off-season runs from April through August. Once the weather turns cold, the phone fills up with urgent calls, and open slots get harder to find. Booking in spring or summer gives you more flexible appointment times and gets your system ready before the first fire. Our appointment tips cover how to prepare.
Small Clues That Point to Bigger Problems
Some chimney trouble is easy to spot once you know what to look for:
- Brick flaking off the chimney or mortar washing out of the joints
- A white haze on the brick that keeps coming back after rain
- Smoke that lingers in the room when the fire is lit
- Rust on the damper or water collecting in the firebox
- Noises from birds or animals inside the flue
If you notice any of these, it is worth a call before the next burning season.
Owner-Led and Family Run
Tom Hunkele has owned and run Top Notch since 2002, and the business is still family operated 24 years later. Tom is a Past President of the National Chimney Sweep Guild and a Certified Master Chimney Technician, and the crew includes a CSIA Certified Sweep. Every sweep comes with our mess-free guarantee, plus dust control and floor protection inside your home.
Caps and Dampers on Ankeny Chimneys
Two parts we check closely are the cap and the damper. A cap that blew off in a storm leaves the flue open to rain, leaves and nesting animals. A damper that has rusted or warped no longer seals, so warm air drifts up the chimney all winter long.
Both problems are common, and both are fairly simple fixes compared with the damage they can lead to. We install and repair caps and dampers, and a professionally installed stainless steel cap carries a lifetime warranty.
Nearby Communities We Serve
Along with Ankeny, our technicians regularly work in Polk City, Bondurant and Johnston. Call (515) 249-6337 or schedule online to get your chimney, dryer vent or air ducts on our calendar.
