Chimney Masonry in Ann Arbor, MI

Sound Structure From the Firebox to the Crown

Chimney crowns need to be at least 2 inches thick at the thinnest point, overhang the brick by 2.5 inches, and carry a 3/8 inch expansion gap around the flue. No other masonry on a house takes as much freeze-thaw exposure. Danaher Family Masonry and Restoration builds chimney masonry in Ann Arbor, MI to that standard, and this page covers tuckpointing, crown replacement, spalling brick swaps, partial and full rebuilds, and a visual damage assessment of the whole stack.


Safety and structure drive how we work, so every job opens with a look at the full stack rather than a guess made from the driveway. Repairs get priced honestly against what a rebuild would cost, and 40 years of chimney work means we know which problems can wait until spring and which cannot. Fall scheduling fills early, so reach out through our contact page and we will get a consultation on the calendar before the weather turns.

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See What We Offer for Chimney Projects

  • Chimney Tuckpointing

    Mortar joints on a chimney fail first because that brick takes the worst weather on a house. We cut old mortar out to 2 to 2.5 times the joint width, repack it, and tool each joint concave so water sheds off the face.

  • Chimney Crown Replacement

    A cracked crown lets water into the top of a stack. We cast a crown at least 2 inches thick at its thinnest point, sloped 3 inches per foot, overhanging 2.5 inches with a drip edge, and gapped 3/8 inch around the flue.

  • Partial Chimney Rebuilds

    When damage stops above the roofline, rebuilding only the exposed section saves the sound masonry below. We take the stack down course by course to solid brick, salvage what is reusable, and relay it in matched mortar to the 3-2-10 height rule.

  • Full Chimney Rebuilds

    Stacks that have lost brick through multiple courses, or that lean, usually need rebuilding from a sound base rather than patching. We dismantle to solid masonry, rebuild in brick chosen to match the house, and finish with a crown sized to overhang correctly.

  • Spalling Brick Replacement

    Spalled brick has already lost its hard fired face, so the soft core behind it absorbs water and breaks down faster each winter. We cut out the failed units, replace with brick matched for size and color, and repoint the surrounding joints.

  • Chimney Damage Assessments

    Before any repair is priced, we look the stack over visually from crown to base, noting open joints, spalled faces, crown cracks, staining and any lean. That visual damage assessment tells us what masonry work is needed and what can wait another season.

Why Choose Us for Chimney Masonry

The Whole Stack Assessed, Not Just the Top

You get a read on the entire chimney, not only the few courses visible from the ground. Crown, joints, brick faces and the section passing through the roof all get looked at, so nothing obvious gets missed and repaired twice.

Crowns Built With a Real Overhang

Undersized crowns dump runoff straight onto the brick below and shorten the life of every joint. Building the overhang and drip edge to the full dimension pushes water clear of the stack, which is the cheapest protection your chimney will ever get.

Brick Matched Above the Roofline

Replacement brick that reads as an obvious patch is visible from the street for the life of the house. Matching size, color and texture to what is already up there keeps the repair quiet, so the roofline looks intact rather than mended.

Damage Caught Before Winter

Michigan winters run roughly 42 freeze-thaw cycles a year, and each one drives water deeper into an open joint. Finding damage in early fall usually means a modest repointing job rather than a rebuild after another season of frozen water widening cracks.

Repairs Priced Against a Rebuild

Knowing what a rebuild would cost makes it easier to judge whether tuckpointing and a crown are worth doing now. We lay both options out plainly, with what each buys in years, so the decision is yours and not a surprise.

A Chimney You Can Stop Watching

Once the crown sheds properly, the joints are full and the spalled units are out, the stack stops being something you check after every storm. That peace is the real point of the work, well past how it looks from the yard.

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Protect the Roofline Above Your Family

Nothing on a house works harder against weather than the stack above the roof, and nothing gets looked at less often. Danaher Family Masonry and Restoration keeps chimney masonry sound in Ann Arbor, MI with tuckpointing, crown replacement, spalling brick swaps and rebuilds sized to the actual damage rather than the worst case. If you have noticed loose brick in the yard, a stain on the ceiling near the flue or crumbling joints you can reach with a fingernail, a visual damage assessment is a reasonable next step. Send us the details through our contact page and we will set up a consultation at a time that suits you.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • How often should a chimney be inspected?

    Annual review is the common recommendation for any chimney in regular use, and NFPA 211 is the governing standard. Our work is a visual masonry damage assessment of brick, joints and crown, not a certified Level 1, 2 or 3 inspection.

  • What is the most common chimney problem?

    Deteriorated mortar joints top the list, since chimney brick is the most freeze-thaw exposed masonry on a house and water enters at the separations between brick and mortar. Cracked crowns and spalled faces usually follow from that same water path.

  • Why are bricks falling off my chimney?

    Water soaked into open joints freezes, expands and pushes units loose, and once the fired face spalls off the brick crumbles quickly. Falling brick means the damage has moved past cosmetic and the stack needs masonry work before more courses go.

  • Is tuckpointing enough for spalling brick?

    No, because spalling is a failure of the brick itself, not the joint between units. Tuckpointing restores mortar, but a brick that has lost its hard fired surface has to come out and be replaced with a matched unit.

  • How do I know if I need chimney repair or a full rebuild?

    Scattered open joints and a few spalled faces usually call for repointing and unit replacement, while lost brick through multiple courses, a leaning stack or a failed crown points toward rebuilding. Danaher Family Masonry and Restoration assesses that visually across Ann Arbor, MI.

  • What is the difference between a chimney crown and a chimney cap?

    The crown is the sloped masonry slab covering the top of the stack, at least 2 inches thick with a 2.5 inch overhang. A cap is a separate metal cover over the flue opening, which is not masonry work we take on.

  • What causes a chimney to leak?

    Most chimney leaks trace back to a cracked crown, open mortar joints or spalled brick, since water almost never passes through sound brick itself. Danaher Family Masonry and Restoration repairs those masonry water paths on chimneys throughout Ann Arbor, MI.

  • What causes white stains on chimney brick?

    That white powder is efflorescence, salts carried to the surface by water moving through the masonry and left behind as it dries. Light deposits brush off, but recurring bloom signals ongoing moisture entry that needs the joints or crown addressed.