The technician showed me exactly what he was doing, step by step, while he worked. It was really interesting to look inside the flue with his tablet camera. Very open service!
Level 1 or Level 2 Chimney Inspection in Cherry Hill Township
Not every chimney needs the same exam. A Level 1 covers what's already visible with the same appliance in place. A Level 2 adds a video camera down the full flue, attic and roof access, and a written report — what New Jersey's 2024 IRC expects before a sale, an insurance claim, or a fuel change. We'll say which one your chimney needs before anyone climbs anything.
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Level 1 vs. Level 2
A Level 1 is the right scope when nothing about the system has changed — same appliance, same fuel, same chimney — the once-a-year baseline NFPA 211 sets. A Level 2 is a different exam: a video camera travels the full length of the flue, we get onto the roof and into the attic to check clearances and flashing, and every finding is documented in a written report with photographs. New Jersey expects that level of documentation, not a look from the driveway, once a fuel or appliance is changing, after a chimney fire, or once a flue has been relined.
When a Level 1 covers everything you need
If the appliance, the fuel and the chimney itself haven't changed since last season, a Level 1 is the right scope: the visible and reachable parts of the system, checked for soundness, blockage and clearance before the heating season starts. Cherry Hill Township adds a wrinkle of its own — 72.8% of its housing stock predates 1980, mostly the colonials, ranches and split-levels built through the 1950s, 60s and 70s on what was once Delaware Township farmland — so a technician's first minutes usually go to confirming exactly which era of chimney is behind the wall.
- No change in appliance, fuel type, or how the fireplace gets used since the last visit
- Seasonal maintenance ahead of the first cold snap, the baseline NFPA 211 sets
- A follow-up check on a chimney that was already swept and found sound
We run the camera first. Everything we tell you afterward comes from what it actually shows.
When New Jersey calls for the full Level 2
A Level 2 stops being optional the moment something around the chimney changes: the house is being sold or refinanced, a chimney fire or lightning strike has occurred, water has been reaching the flue through a roof leak, the fuel or appliance is changing, or an existing flue is being relined. Each of those moves the job from routine upkeep to what New Jersey's residential subcode — the 2024 IRC, adopted at N.J.A.C. 5:23-3.21 — and most manufacturer listings actually call for. It's also the version a title company or mortgage underwriter will accept; a verbal opinion from the yard is not documentation.
Cherry Hill's own conversion problem: a flue sized for a fuel that's gone
81.3% of occupied homes in Cherry Hill Township now heat with utility gas, against just 2.1% still on fuel oil — the township has largely finished converting. That's exactly where trouble starts: a flue built and lined for a hot, high-volume oil or coal exhaust now carries a much smaller gas appliance, and the cooler gas exhaust condenses against masonry sized for something else entirely. That condensation is the leading cause of liner failure in this housing stock. New Jersey's chimney verification form, F370, exists for precisely this — and under N.J.A.C. 5:23-2.20(d), it's the installer, never the homeowner, who signs it.
- A camera scan measures the flue against the appliance now connected to it, not the old one
- Cherry Hill's own Department of Code Enforcement and Inspections issues the permit — a municipal matter, not a county one
- Form F370 confirms the flue is appropriately sized and lined for the fuel actually running through it
What you're left holding when we're done
Every inspection ends with a written report, not a verbal opinion in the driveway. It states the level performed, notes anything that couldn't be reached, and includes the camera's photographs — exactly what a title company, an insurer, or a buyer's attorney will ask to see. Cherry Hill Township's own Fire Department runs the resale smoke and carbon-monoxide certificate inspection through its SDI division and asks for three to four weeks' notice before settlement, so a chimney finding is worth uncovering long before it becomes a scramble before closing.
What the camera finds
Findings a flashlight from the hearth won't show you
A cracked crown, found on roof access during a Level 2 — invisible from the ground
Soot and creosote built up inside a firebox ahead of the heating season
Flashing pulled back where roof water had been tracking into the flue
A liner sized and documented as part of a fuel-conversion verification
What Cherry Hill homeowners are saying
5.0
15 reviews on Google
Read on
I have an ancient farm home with an unlined brick chimney. They cleaned the soot away with soft brushing without disturbing any of the ancient interior mortar joints.
The tech pointed out a small fracture in our firebrick that I would have overlooked entirely. Patched it up there for a very fair amount.
Chimney inspection questions, answered plainly
What's actually different between a Level 1 and a Level 2 inspection?
A Level 1 covers what's already visible and reachable — firebox, damper, the accessible stretch of flue — and confirms it's sound for the same appliance and fuel. A Level 2 adds a full video camera pass down the flue, access to the roof and attic for clearances and flashing, and a written report with photographs.
When does New Jersey actually require the Level 2 instead of the Level 1?
At a home sale or refinance, after a chimney fire or lightning strike, once water has reached the flue through a roof leak, or when the fuel or appliance is changing — a camera-documented written report is what a title company, underwriter, or insurer will rely on. We'll say directly if a Level 1 covers your situation instead.
I'm converting from oil to gas — what does that mean for my chimney?
The flue that served your oil appliance is almost always too large for the gas one replacing it, which lets the exhaust cool and condense against the masonry. New Jersey's Form F370 requires the installer to verify the flue is properly sized and lined for the new fuel before the job is signed off — Cherry Hill Township issues the permit through its own Department of Code Enforcement and Inspections.
How far ahead of a home sale should I schedule an inspection?
Earlier than most people expect. Cherry Hill's own Fire Department asks for three to four weeks' notice for the resale smoke and carbon-monoxide certificate inspection, and a Level 2 chimney report is something a buyer's attorney or mortgage underwriter may separately ask for — scheduling both well before closing avoids a last-minute delay.
The rest of the chimney side
Chimney Sweep
Clearing the creosote and debris an inspection flags, before it turns into a fire risk or a blocked flue.
See the serviceChimney Repair
Crowns, caps, flashing and masonry — the fixes an inspection report calls for, done to the 2024 IRC standard.
See the serviceFireplace and Stove Service
Damper, firebox and hearth-appliance work that keeps what an inspection checked running the way it should.
See the service