Before & After Gallery - Kindling Chimney Sandy Springs

Chimney Cleaning Before & After in Sandy Springs, GA

Photos tell the truth faster than any claim we could make. Below are the jobs we see most often in Sandy Springs: glazed creosote, wildlife surprises, water-stained fireboxes, and liners that looked fine from the living room but weren’t. Each one shows what we found, what we did, and what the homeowner got back. No stock photos, no staging: just the kind of flues we actually open up in this city.

Call (229) 459-1048

Recent Transformations

Glazed Creosote Removal in Dunwoody Panhandle

The problem: a wood-burning fireplace that had years of hot, smoldering fires but only occasional sweeping. The creosote had baked into a hard, shiny glaze, the kind that brushes skip over. We ran mechanical flue scrapers and rotary rods to break the glaze, then followed with hand brushing to pull the debris down. The result: the liner was clean to the tile, draft improved immediately, and the homeowner stopped getting that campfire smell in the room on humid days.

Raccoon Nest Eviction in North Springs

What looked like a simple sweep turned out to be a full raccoon nursery about six feet down the flue. We removed the nest material, swept the entire chimney down to the smoke shelf, and installed a stainless flue cap so the raccoons had to find new real estate. The homeowner had noticed scratching sounds for weeks but couldn’t tell where it was coming from. The after photo shows a clean flue and a cap that stays.

Heavy Soot and Draft Smoke Staining in Riverside

This fireplace was drafting poorly, pushing smoke into the living room whenever the wind shifted. The flue had a thick, powdery soot layer, and the smoke chamber above the damper was packed with it. We swept the full flue, vacuumed the smoke chamber with our HEPA vac, and cleaned the firebox by hand. The family started burning again the next weekend, and the smoke stayed where it belonged: up the chimney.

Water Damage and Rusted Damper on a Roswell Road Townhome

We found this during what the homeowner thought would be a routine sweep. The damper was so rusted it wouldn’t close fully, and water had been running down the flue during Georgia thunderstorms. We removed the rusted damper, installed a new top-sealing damper, and sealed the crown with a waterproof coating. The homeowner’s utility bill dropped that first winter, and no more rusty flakes in the firebox.

Questionable Liner in a Mid-Century Ranch near Hammond Park

The chimney swept clean, but our camera inspection showed something brushes can’t fix: cracked tile liner with missing mortar joints. The homeowner was worried they’d be pushed into a full rebuild. Instead, we resurfaced the flue with HeatShield, a cast-in-place material that sealed the gaps and restored a continuous passage. The after photo tells the story: a smooth, intact liner without the price of a teardown.

Chimney Sweep for a New Homeowner off Spalding Drive

Moving into a home with an unknown chimney history is a gamble. This homeowner called us before lighting their first fire. We swept the flue, removed the old ash and debris from the previous owners, and gave the whole system a level two inspection. The before photo shows why they called. The after photo shows a fireplace ready for the family’s first winter in Sandy Springs.

Want Results Like These?

Every job above started with the same call: a homeowner who wanted to see what was in their chimney before they trusted it. That’s the right instinct. We’ll show you the same camera footage and before-and-after photos for your fireplace. Call (229) 459-1048 and ask for Danny. You’ll get a straight answer, a written price, and a clean flue before the first cold night.

Written by Danny Cortes, Owner at Kindling Chimney Sandy Springs, serving Sandy Springs and the 13 surrounding communities.