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Chimney Crown Rebuild in Auburn, WA
Auburn’s older brick chimneys downtown and in the valley often sit under a cracked original crown. We rebuild crowns starting at $299.
- Serving Auburn & King County
- Free 2nd-opinion quotes
- Price match + 10–25% discount
Free Chimney Crown Rebuild Quote in Auburn
We'll confirm a time by phone or text.
A chimney crown is the concrete top of a brick chimney, and it only applies to masonry chimneys, so in Auburn this service is mostly for the older downtown grid and valley homes rather than the prefab fireplaces in Lakeland Hills and Lea Hill. Those older brick chimneys are often the original structure on the house, and the crown on them was frequently poured thin from mortar, flush with the brick edge and without an overhang. When that crown cracks, rain runs into the top courses of brick and down around the flue tile, and the damage works its way down the chimney one winter at a time.
We rebuild crowns in Auburn starting at $299. A rebuilt crown is thicker, slopes away from the flue, overhangs the brick so water drips clear of the face, and has a sealed expansion gap around the flue tile so it does not crack again when the tile heats up. We check the top brick courses and cap too, with a free quote on anything else. Already have a crown quote? We give a free second-opinion quote and price match plus 10-25% off. Auburn is about 20 minutes from Renton, so crown work is easy to schedule on a dry day.
Symptoms
Signs Auburn homeowners notice
- Pieces of concrete or mortar missing from the top edge of the chimney
- Cracks wide enough to see daylight or fit a coin into
- The crown is flat or dished in the middle so water pools on it
- No overhang: the slab ends flush with the brick faces
- The top two or three courses of brick are spalling or loose
- A previous crown sealant is peeling off and the cracks underneath have reopened
Auburn Conditions
Why this happens in Auburn
The crown takes more weather than any other part of an Auburn chimney. The area averages about 40 inches of rain across roughly 150-156 days of measurable precipitation a year, so the crown is wet for most of the October-to-March season. Water that settles into a hairline crack then meets the local freeze pattern: about 60 days a year touch 32F, but winter lows average around 37F, so the water freezes at night and thaws the next day rather than staying frozen. Each cycle pushes the crack a little wider, which is the saturation-plus-freezing process that breaks down masonry.
The older valley and downtown brick chimneys in Auburn have typically been through many decades of that on an original crown. By the time a homeowner notices loose brick at the top or water in the firebox, the crown has usually been leaking for several seasons.
How It Works
Our chimney crown rebuild process
Remove the failed crown
We break out the old slab or mortar wash down to solid brick, protecting the flue opening so debris does not fall into the chimney.
Repair the top courses
Any loose or spalled brick in the top courses is reset or replaced so the new crown sits on sound masonry.
Form with overhang and slope
We build a form that projects past the brick faces on all sides and slopes the surface away from the flue so water runs off instead of sitting.
Pour and finish
The crown is poured in a single placement with a bond break around the flue tile so heat expansion does not crack it, and a drip edge is formed on the underside of the overhang.
Cure and seal
Once cured, we apply a breathable water repellent and, where useful, a flexible sealant at the flue joint. A new cap goes on if the old one is damaged.
Full details, options and pricing factors on the main Chimney Crown Rebuild page.
Need chimney crown rebuild in Auburn?
Call now or request a free quote — we confirm by phone or text.
☎ 206-453-2045 Request a QuoteQuestions
Chimney Crown Rebuild in Auburn — FAQ
My Auburn house is in Lakeland Hills. Do I have a chimney crown?
Probably not. Most Lakeland Hills and Lea Hill homes built from the 1990s on have prefab fireplaces inside a framed chase, which is topped by a metal chase cover rather than a concrete crown. If your chimney is sided rather than brick, see our chase cover replacement page. Brick chimneys downtown and in the valley do have crowns.
When should crown work be scheduled in Auburn?
The dry season is best. June through August averages only about three inches of rain combined, so a new crown can cure properly. We can work in other months between storms with the crown protected, but if the existing crown is not actively leaking, scheduling an Auburn rebuild in summer is the easiest and cleanest option.
How soon can you do chimney crown rebuild in Auburn?
We confirm a time by phone or text after you request a quote; same-day service is often available for urgent problems in Auburn and the rest of King County.
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