Level 2 Chimney Inspection in Woodland Hills, Priced Before the Scan

A Level 2 inspection includes everything in a Level 1, plus a camera run through the full length of the flue and a look at accessible parts of the attic and crawl space. Lawson charges $320 for it on a single-flue ranch and on a tall two-flue stack under steep tile alike. The one extra is a flue so dirty it has to be swept before the camera can see anything. If a sweep is needed first, it is a separate line from $210, and we tell you before doing it.

For a home sale in Woodland Hills, timing matters. Buyers usually have a short inspection window, and a chimney with problems tends to show up late in it. Booking the Level 2 early gives you a written report and, if needed, repair options with prices that you can use in the negotiation. Sellers sometimes order one before listing for the same reason. Either way, the report is written for a homeowner, an agent and a lender to read without a translator.

Camera footage of an old flue can look alarming. Most clay liners in valley houses built in the 1950s and 1960s show some cracking, and the 1994 Northridge earthquake left many with offset joints. Not all of that means relining. A single cracked tile high in the flue can sometimes be repaired with a liner patch system. Several cracked tiles, open joints or a liner pulled away from the brick usually means a stainless steel liner, which is quoted in writing after the scan. We rank what we see: unsafe to use, use with care until repaired, or monitor at the next inspection.

For a sale, that ranking is what helps buyer and seller agree. A cracked crown and a rusty damper are maintenance. A broken liner is a safety repair that a lender may want done. We put a price or a range on each, and where there are two ways to fix something, both go on the page. If you are the buyer, you can use the report to ask for a credit rather than a rushed repair by the seller's contractor. If you are the seller, it shows you exactly what you are being asked about.