Level 1 sweep and inspection to the NFPA 211 annual standard - flue, crown, cap, and flashing checked and photographed
Chimney sweep logs do not sweep chimneys. They loosen some creosote - which then falls where a brush and vacuum still have to collect it.
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Before
AfterLevel 2 Inspection in Arlington Heights, IL
An annual sweep often includes a Level 2 chimney inspection, which is a camera-assisted examination of your entire chimney system – flue liner, smoke chamber, firebox, exterior masonry, and accessible attic or crawl space clearances – conducted to NFPA 211 standards. In Arlington Heights, a Level 2 inspection from Level Two Chimney Co. runs $149 to $299 and includes a written price before anyone starts, a full camera scan down the flue, and a documented photo record when we’re done. Most jobs are scheduled within two to three business days.
If you’ve recently bought a home in Arlington Heights, had any work done on your heating appliance, or experienced an event like a chimney fire or a severe weather season, a Level 2 is not optional under NFPA 211 – it’s the required standard. A flashlight look from the firebox opening doesn’t count. We’ve been doing this since 2009, across more than 38,000 chimneys in the Chicago metro, and our full Chimney Cleaning & Sweep in Arlington Heights service is built around the Level 2 as the diagnostic baseline – not a premium add-on.
Questions before you book? Call (331) 202-2419 – a live person answers, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, no voicemail.
When You Need a Level 2 Inspection
NFPA 211 defines the situations that require a Level 2. We’d add a few Arlington Heights-specific patterns we see every season.
- You bought or sold a home. NFPA 211 mandates a Level 2 at every real estate transfer. A significant number of the homes we inspect in Arlington Heights near the historic Scarsdale and Berkley Square neighborhoods have aging terra cotta liners that were never upgraded when gas inserts were added – something a Level 1 or a visual check will miss entirely.
- You had a chimney fire. Even a slow, smoldering creosote fire – the kind you may not have noticed – can crack the flue liner, compromise mortar joints, or deform the smoke chamber. A camera scan is the only way to document what actually happened inside the flue.
- You changed your heating appliance. Swapped out an oil furnace for a gas insert? Added a wood stove? Any change to the connected appliance triggers a Level 2 requirement under NFPA 211 because the new appliance may not be compatible with the existing liner size or material.
- Your home sustained storm or freeze damage. Arlington Heights averages roughly 38 inches of snow per year, and freeze-thaw cycling does visible work on chimney crowns and mortar joints. But the damage that matters most happens inside, where water that entered through a cracked crown works its way into the flue tile joints. A camera scan shows it; a ladder-top look does not.
- Your insurer asked for documentation. After a claim or during a policy renewal, insurers increasingly ask for a Level 2 report with photo documentation. Clause 4 of the Haven Standard requires a documented photo record on every job, so our report format is already built for this.
- You smell smoke or see staining you can’t explain. Persistent smoke smell in a living space, or black staining appearing around a firebox that wasn’t there before, often points to a compromised flue liner or a failed smoke chamber parging. Both conditions need a camera scan to confirm their scope before any repair quote is written.
Our Level 2 Inspection Process
Here’s exactly what happens from the time our tech arrives to the moment you have your written report in hand.
- Written price delivered before any work starts. Haven Standard Clause 1 – H.A.V.E.N., “Have it in writing” – means the written price, written scope, and written warranty go to you before the drop cloth goes down. You’ll know what you’re paying before the camera comes off the truck. No exceptions.
- Exterior inspection. The tech works the roofline first: chimney cap condition, crown integrity (looking for spalling – surface flaking – and cracks that allow water entry), flashing seal at the roof penetration, and the exterior masonry from the roofline to the chimney base. In older Arlington Heights homes, we often find that original clay-cap crowns were never properly overhung, meaning water runs directly down the masonry face each season.
- Firebox and smoke chamber inspection. Inside, we document firebox floor and back-wall condition, damper operation and seal, and the smoke chamber parging. Parging is the mortar coating applied to the corbeled masonry of the smoke chamber to create a smooth, airtight surface. Where it fails – which it does in a high percentage of pre-1990 Arlington Heights homes – it creates turbulence in draft and a direct pathway for heat and gases to reach combustible framing.
- Camera scan of the flue liner. A high-resolution inspection camera goes down the full length of the flue. We’re looking at liner type (terra cotta tile, stainless, poured liner), joint integrity, creosote class (Class I is light and brushable; Class II is tar-like and sticky; Class III is glazed and effectively bonded to the liner – this one matters for safety), offset alignment, and any visible obstructions. The footage is documented per Clause 4 of the Haven Standard.
- Attic and accessible crawl space clearances. Where attic access is available, we verify clearances between the chimney exterior and combustible framing – a detail that NFPA 211 Level 2 specifically requires and that a Level 1 inspection skips entirely.
- Written report with photo documentation. You receive a written inspection report naming specific conditions found, their locations, and their significance, together with the photo record from the camera scan. If repairs are needed, the scope and price are written out before we ask anything of you. The 365-Day Done Right Promise is stamped on every job.
Before
AfterLevel 2 Inspection Pricing in Arlington Heights
A Level 2 chimney inspection in Arlington Heights from Level Two Chimney Co. costs $149 to $299 for a standard single-flue system-see our full 2026 price guide for details. That price includes the camera scan, the documented photo record, and the written report – none of those are add-ons here.
| Scope | Price Range |
|---|---|
| Single-flue residential inspection (standard) | $149 – $199 |
| Single-flue with same-day chimney cleaning included | $229 – $299 |
| Two-flue system inspection | $249 – $349 |
| Inspection report for real estate transaction (expedited written report) | Add $30 – $50 |
A few things affect where your job lands in that range. Chimney height is the main factor – taller chimneys take longer to scan and reach safely. System complexity matters too: a prefabricated fireplace with a factory-built flue takes less time than a double-flue masonry system. If we find Class III creosote that requires chemical treatment before the camera can pass cleanly, that’s a separate line item, written out and approved before we proceed.
If you’ve already received a written estimate from another company, bring it to us. We offer a free second opinion on any written estimate – no obligation, no pressure, just a read on whether what was quoted makes sense for what was found.
Call (331) 202-2419 for your written quote. We don’t do “contact us for pricing” – a number on the page is the point.
What the Camera Finds That a Flashlight Doesn’t
This is worth saying plainly, because a lot of Arlington Heights homeowners have been told they received a chimney inspection when what actually happened was a tech shone a light up the flue from the firebox and reported it looked clear.
A flashlight inspection from the firebox opening can see, at best, the bottom three to four feet of a flue that may be twenty or thirty feet long. It cannot show liner joint separation at mid-flue. It cannot show a horizontal crack in a terra cotta tile section behind the smoke chamber where the flue transitions from vertical to offset. It cannot document Class II creosote accumulation on the upper sections of the liner, which is where it tends to concentrate because the flue gases cool as they rise-making professional soot removal essential.
The camera we use goes the full length of the flue. In Arlington Heights homes built between 1955 and 1985 – which make up a substantial share of the housing stock in neighborhoods like Kensington, Beverly, and areas around Recreation Park – terra cotta liner systems are now 40 to 70 years old. Joint deterioration and tile cracking at that age is common, not exceptional. The only way to know what you actually have is to look at the full length with a camera and document what the camera sees.
Since 2009, this camera-scan-as-default practice became Clause 4 of the Haven Standard – the documented photo record requirement that runs on every job, not just the ones where we suspect a problem. We didn’t start doing it because regulators required it. We started doing it because it’s the only way to give a homeowner an accurate picture of their chimney’s condition, and it became the standard years before insurers started asking for it.
How Level 2 Connects to Your Chimney Cleaning
A Level 2 inspection and chimney cleaning & sweep aren’t separate decisions – they inform each other directly. The inspection determines what class of creosote is present, which determines the cleaning method. Class I creosote (dry, flaky, light gray or black) comes off with standard brushing. Class II creosote (tar-like, sticky, dark brown or black) requires chemical treatments to break it down before brushing. Class III creosote – glazed, hard, and effectively fused to the liner surface – requires a different approach entirely and in some cases means the liner needs to be replaced rather than cleaned.
Ordering a cleaning without first knowing what’s in the flue means you may be paying for a process that doesn’t address the actual condition. That’s why our home inspection standard runs the camera first, documents what’s there, and then scopes the cleaning to match – written out before any brush goes in the flue.
In cases where a liner replacement is needed, we work with DuraFlex stainless liner systems and HeatShield for flue resurfacing – materials sourced through Haven’s buying network specifically to keep customer pricing accurate, not inflated. If a liner job is in scope after the inspection, the price is written before we ask you to decide.
FAQs – Level 2 Inspection in Arlington Heights
How much does a Level 2 chimney inspection cost in Arlington Heights?
A Level 2 chimney inspection in Arlington Heights runs $149 to $299 for most single-flue residential systems, with two-flue systems in the $249 to $349 range. The price includes the camera scan and the written photo-documented report – those aren’t extras. If you’re buying or selling a home and need an expedited written report for the transaction, add $30 to $50 for that format. A written price is delivered before work starts, every time. Call (331) 202-2419 for an exact quote – it costs nothing.
Is a Level 2 inspection required when buying a home in Arlington Heights?
Yes. NFPA 211, the national standard for chimneys and fireplaces, requires a Level 2 inspection at every change of ownership. A general home inspector’s visual check does not satisfy this requirement – NFPA 211 Level 2 specifically requires a camera scan of the flue. Many Arlington Heights real estate attorneys and lenders now ask for the written Level 2 report as part of the transaction file. If your home inspection report notes the chimney as “visually inspected,” that’s a Level 1, not a Level 2.
How long does a Level 2 inspection take?
For a standard single-flue Arlington Heights home, plan for 60 to 90 minutes. A two-flue system or a home with a complex roofline takes closer to two hours. That time includes the full exterior inspection, the firebox and smoke chamber review, the camera scan, and the written report – not just the camera pass. We give you a time window when you book, and you get a text when the tech is on the way.
Can you repair what you find during the same visit?
Minor items – a loose chimney cap, a cracked rain cover, light creosote in a brushable Class I state – can often be addressed the same day if the materials are on the truck and you approve the written price on the spot. Liner repairs or full re-linings using systems like DuraFlex or HeatShield are scheduled separately because they require a scoped quote and material order. Nothing gets started without a written price in front of you first, regardless of how small the job is. If a second visit is needed, you’ll know the scope and price before we leave the first one.
Key Takeaways
- A Level 2 inspection means a camera down the full length of the flue – not a flashlight from the firebox opening.
- NFPA 211 requires a Level 2 at every real estate transfer, after every chimney fire, and after any change to a connected appliance.
- Pricing in Arlington Heights runs $149 to $299 for a single-flue system, with the camera scan and photo-documented report included in that number.
- A written price is delivered before work starts – Haven Standard Clause 1, no exceptions.
- The documented photo record is standard on every job under Clause 4 of the Haven Standard, and the format is built to satisfy insurer documentation requests.
- The 365-Day Done Right Promise covers every inspection: if something isn’t right, we make it right.
- A free second opinion is available on any written estimate from a competitor – bring the paperwork.
Schedule Your Level 2 Inspection in Arlington Heights
If you’re buying a home, filing an insurance claim, or just want to know what’s actually in your flue before you light a fire this season, call (331) 202-2419. A live person picks up around the clock. Corrine Halstead and the Level Two Chimney Arlington Heights team will get a written price to you before anything else happens – that’s not a promise we make for marketing purposes, it’s the operating standard the company was built on in 2009 and has run on across more than 38,000 jobs since.
The camera goes down the flue. The photos come back with you. The price is in writing before we start. That’s the job.
Written by Corrine Halstead, Owner at Level Two Chimney Arlington Heights, serving Arlington Heights since 2009.