Chimney repair in Las Cruces NM - a sound chimney that keeps the water out
Water stains near the chimney, crumbling mortar or a cracked crown? We find where the water gets in and fix the masonry and flashing.
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What does chimney repair fix, and when do you need it?
Chimney repair in Las Cruces means fixing missing, loose or cracked brick and mortar joints, plus the flashing where the chimney passes through the roof, so the chimney stands sound and keeps water out of your house.
Most people call D&R Las Cruces Concrete & Masonry after a water stain shows up on the ceiling by the fireplace, mortar sand collects on the hearth or a crack runs across the top of the chimney. The price moves with how much brick and mortar has to be replaced, whether the crown and flashing need redoing and how hard your roof is to work on, and the schedule turns on how big the repair is and whether it needs a permit. The written estimate puts a figure on your own chimney before you decide anything.
What our chimney repair covers
A leak near a chimney often starts where it meets the roof, so I check the flashing and the crown along with the brick before we settle on what to fix. Our crew cuts out missing or cracked brick and lays in new, rakes out loose or cracked mortar joints and packs them with fresh mortar, and repairs or rebuilds the crown so it sheds water off the top. Then we redo the flashing at the roof line if it's letting water in, and clean up the roof and the hearth before we leave. If you're planning a new liner, we fix the masonry first so the liner goes into a sound chimney.
Sometimes the chimney isn't the only brick that needs help. When the mortar is worn across a whole wall of the house, tuckpointing replaces the joints a section at a time, and broken or crumbling bricks elsewhere fall under brick repair. If I spot either while I'm looking at your chimney, I'll put it on the estimate as its own line so you can decide on it separately.
Chimney repair permits and work in Las Cruces
Inside Las Cruces, the city issues permits for most building projects after it reviews an application, which gets filed through its online Citizen Portal, and work in the city is held to the same building codes the state uses. The city decides whether your chimney job needs a permit, so we don't guess at it. We find out which office handles your address, and when a permit is needed, we take care of the application and set up the inspections.
We're based in Las Cruces and work across the cities around it, on both sides of the state line. Most chimneys we're called to are brick or block, and the trouble usually shows up at the top first, at a cracked crown or flashing that's pulled away from the brick, and we see the same thing on jobs in Anthony and Canutillo.
- Call (575) 222-9031
- Mon–Fri: 6 AM–10 PM, Sat–Sun: 8 AM–10 PM
- Las Cruces, NM 88001
What happens when you call D&R Las Cruces Concrete & Masonry about your chimney
Call or send a request
Call (575) 222-9031 or use the request form and tell us what you've noticed, like a stain by the chimney, cracked brick or a liner you're planning. That tells me what to look at before I come out.
I look at it myself
I check the brick, the joints, the crown and the flashing to work out what's actually causing the trouble. You get a written estimate that spells out the work and the price, and you don't have to decide while I'm standing there.
We get it scheduled
If the job needs a permit, the city processes residential permits within 0 to 3 business days, so it's a short wait. We set the work date around that review and let you know when the crew is coming.
We repair and walk it
Our crew does the repair and cleans up, then we walk the finished chimney with you. You see the new joints, crown and flashing before we call it done.
Why Las Cruces homeowners call D&R Las Cruces Concrete & Masonry for chimney repair
The owner looks at every chimney
I come out to look at every job myself, and the work is done by me and our crew. The person who figured out why your chimney leaks is the same one fixing it.
In business since 2013
We've been at this for 13 years, and I learned the trade mixing mortar and carrying block on my father's jobs. He taught me the part you can't see is holding everything else up, so the flashing and crown get the same care as the brick.
Ask for the license first
New Mexico requires a license for anyone doing or offering construction contracting, and the state's Construction Industries Division, which licenses contractors, has an office here in Las Cruces. We're licensed and fully insured, and we're glad to show you before any work starts.
On a chimney, the work that counts is the work you can't see from the yard, so ask us to come look at yours or call (575) 222-9031.
Request an estimateGet a written estimate for your chimney repair
We reply to every request within one business day, and the estimate is free, done at your house and comes with no obligation. I come out myself, look over the brick, crown and flashing, and tell you in writing what's causing the trouble and what it'll take to fix.
- Licensed and fully insured.
- Phone
- (575) 222-9031
- Location
- Las Cruces, NM 88001
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 6 AM–10 PM, Sat–Sun: 8 AM–10 PM
Questions about chimney repair in Las Cruces
How often should my chimney be inspected?
At least once a year, which is what the national chimney safety standard calls for. The check looks at whether the chimney is sound, at deposits built up inside and at the clearances, and repairs follow if it turns something up. Booking it well before you plan to use the fireplace gives you room to schedule any fix.
Why does my chimney leak near the roof?
Usually because the flashing where the chimney passes through the roof has failed, and that joint needs both base flashing, the metal that lies on the roof and turns up the brick, and counter flashing, set into the mortar and lapped over the top of it. The crown is the other spot people miss, since water getting past it runs down between the chimney wall and the flue liner. Metal flashing is the usual recommendation because it holds up to heat and weather, and on a brick chimney it shouldn't be aluminum, because fresh mortar attacks aluminum.
Can a new chimney liner go in before the masonry is repaired?
No, not under one liner maker's instructions, which require an inspection showing the chimney is structurally sound before its liner goes in. Missing, loose or cracked brick and mortar joints get repaired first. If a new liner is in your plans, budget for that masonry work too.
How much does a chimney cap and crown repair cost in Las Cruces?
Across the US, a typical cap and crown repair, installed, usually costs about $550 to $2,350 per job, and that's a national guide, not our price. Where yours lands depends on how badly the crown is cracked, whether the cap is being replaced and how hard the roof is to work on. For a Las Cruces figure on your own chimney, the written estimate gives you that.
What causes a chimney crown to crack?
Most cracked crowns we see were built as a thin layer of mortar troweled over the top instead of a proper crown, so they shrink, crack and let water into the chimney. Rather than smear another coat over the crack, we usually rebuild a crown like that thick enough to shed water and sloped away from the flue.
How do I get my house ready for chimney repair?
Move or cover the furniture and rugs near the fireplace, because chimneys are usually very sooty and dusty, and one liner maker advises doing just that during cleaning. We lay drop cloths at the hearth and clean up when we're done, but clearing the room yourself is the surest way to keep soot off the things you care about.
Other brick work we handle
Tuckpointing
If the mortar on your house walls is going sandy too, tuckpointing replaces those worn joints so water stops working its way into the brick.
Brick repair
Cracked, chipped or crumbling bricks on a garden wall, a planter or the house itself can be cut out and replaced with brick picked to match.
Book a look at your chimney
Jot down where you've seen water, any cracked brick and whether a new liner is in your plans, and I'll know what to look for when I come out.
Request an estimateCall (575) 222-9031