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Chimney Animal & Nest Removal Seattle, WA
Birds, squirrels, raccoons and nests removed from the flue, the chimney cleaned out, and a cap fitted so it does not happen again. Do not light a fire. Call us.
- Free 2nd-opinion quotes
- Price match + 10–25% discount
- Same-day service often available
Request a Free Chimney Animal & Nest Removal Quote
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An open chimney is a warm, sheltered, vertical hollow, and to a bird, squirrel or raccoon it looks like a tree. Our animal and nest removal service gets the animal out, clears the nesting material and droppings from the flue and smoke shelf, and closes the door behind it with a proper cap. If an animal is loose in the house or injured, a wildlife control operator is the right first call.
This page is for homeowners who hear scratching, chirping or thumping in the chimney, who have found a nest on the smoke shelf, or who smell something dead behind the damper. If the nest is old and abandoned and no animal is present, the job is a chimney cleaning.
We cover Seattle, Tacoma, Everett and the surrounding Puget Sound from Renton, same-day service is often available, and the quote is free. If you already have a quote from another company, we match it and take 10–25% off.
Symptoms
Signs you need chimney animal & nest removal
- Scratching, fluttering or thumping inside the chimney at dawn and dusk
- Chirping or squeaking from behind the fireplace in spring and early summer
- Twigs, grass, feathers or leaves falling into the firebox
- A strong, sour or rotten smell that gets worse on warm days
- Flies appearing in the room around the fireplace
- Smoke backing into the house because the flue is packed
Common causes
- No chimney cap, or a cap with a damaged mesh screen
- A chase cover or flashing gap large enough for a small animal to squeeze through
- Chimney swifts, which nest in open flues in the warm months and are federally protected
- Raccoons using a masonry flue as a den, often a mother with young on the smoke shelf
How It Works
Our chimney animal & nest removal process
First we find out what is in the chimney and whether it is alive. We listen, look up the flue with a light or camera, and check the smoke shelf and damper from the firebox. The answer changes everything: a live raccoon with young is handled differently from a dead squirrel, and an active chimney swift nest cannot be removed while the birds are in it, because swifts are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. We also check the top of the chimney to see how the animal got in, since fixing the entry point is the only thing that stops a repeat.
Identify the animal and the situation
Sounds, droppings, nest material and a camera look tell us what we are dealing with before anything is touched.
Remove the animal or wait it out
Live animals are removed or encouraged out through the top using humane methods. For protected nesting birds such as chimney swifts, we schedule the clean-out for after the young have fledged.
Clear the nest and debris
With the room protected and a HEPA vacuum running, we pull nesting material, droppings and any remains from the flue and bag them for disposal.
Clean and deodorize the flue
We brush and vacuum the flue and treat the source of any smell so it does not linger into the burning season.
Fit a cap and close entry points
We install a screened chimney cap sized to the flue and seal any gaps at the chase cover or flashing, so the chimney is no longer an open door.
Options
Repair and service options
Once the animal is out, the rest of the job is preventing the next one. The options we offer:
- Nest and debris clean-out only for an abandoned nest in a chimney that already has a working cap.
- Live-animal removal plus clean-out for raccoons, squirrels and trapped birds, followed by a full flue clean.
- Screened chimney cap installation: the single most effective fix. A stainless steel cap with a mesh screen keeps birds and squirrels out while still letting smoke exit; see chimney cap replacement.
- Chase cover or flashing repair when the entry point is a rusted-through cover or a roofline gap; see chase cover replacement.
- Top-sealing damper for a masonry fireplace, which closes the flue at the top when not in use and keeps both animals and rain out.
We use safe, green materials, and our guarantee applies: if you are not happy, we are not done.
Pricing
What affects the price
- Whether the animal is alive, dead or has already left
- Type of animal and whether young are present
- How much nesting material and debris has to be removed
- Chimney height and roof access
- Cap, chase cover or flashing work to seal the entry point
Every chimney is different, so you get a written quote after we look at the system. Ask about our price match and free second-opinion quote.
Safety & Seattle Conditions
Safety considerations
Do not light a fire to smoke an animal out. A nest packed in the flue will block the smoke, send it into the house, and can catch fire inside the chimney, and an animal that cannot escape will die in the flue. Keep the damper closed so nothing gets into the room, and call us.
Raccoon droppings can carry disease and chimney swifts are federally protected, so this is not a job for a broom. Our certified and insured crew handles the roof, the flue and the cleanup.
Seattle & Puget Sound conditions
Puget Sound chimneys get animal traffic year-round but the pattern follows the weather. The NOAA normals for Sea-Tac show June through August delivering only about 3.0 inches of rain, when most nesting happens in an open flue, and October through March bringing roughly 29.65 inches, when a sheltered chimney becomes a dry den.
An uncapped flue also lets all that rain in, and wet nesting material is what turns a minor animal problem into a stinking, smoking one. That is why a screened cap matters more here than in drier climates.
Our Work
Chimney Animal & Nest Removal in action
Animal in the chimney? Do not light a fire. Call us.
Humane removal, full clean-out and a screened cap to end it. Free quote, same-day often available. 206-453-2045.
☎ 206-453-2045 Request a QuoteQuestions
Chimney Animal & Nest Removal FAQ
There is a bird chirping in my chimney. What should I do?
Keep the damper closed, do not light a fire, and call us at 206-453-2045. If the birds are chimney swifts, which nest in open flues in late spring and summer, they are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the nest cannot be disturbed until the young have fledged. If it is swifts, we schedule the clean-out and cap for after they leave.
Can I light a fire to drive the animal out?
No. A nest in the flue blocks smoke and can ignite, and a trapped animal will not climb out through smoke; it will die in the flue. Lighting a fire is how a scratching problem becomes a smoke-filled house and a dead-animal smell. Leave the damper closed and call us; we remove the animal and the nest and fit a cap so it does not happen again.
How did a raccoon get into my chimney?
Raccoons climb masonry easily and see an uncapped flue as a ready-made den, often using the smoke shelf above the damper to raise young. Nearby trees, a rusted chase cover or a cap with a broken screen all give access. After removal we install a screened stainless cap and seal any gaps so the chimney is no longer an option.
Something smells dead behind my fireplace. Is that an animal?
Very likely. Squirrels and birds sometimes fall into a flue and cannot climb the smooth walls back out, and the smell, and often flies, appear a few days later. We locate and remove the remains from the smoke shelf or flue, clean and deodorize, and then cap the chimney. Sooner is better; the smell soaks into the soot.
Does a chimney cap really keep animals out?
Yes, a cap with an intact mesh screen is the standard fix and the reason this problem is rare on capped chimneys. Animals get in when there is no cap, when the screen has rusted or torn, or when a chase cover has opened a gap. We size the cap to your flue; see chimney cap replacement.
Do you remove the nest if the animal is already gone?
Yes. An abandoned nest still blocks the flue, holds moisture and odor, and can catch fire. We clear the material and droppings, clean the flue, and fit a cap. If the nest is old and dry, we treat it as a chimney cleaning and quote it that way, with same-day service often available.
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