Masonry repair
Sweep & inspection
Caps & crowns
Flue relining
Gas fireplace serviceLevel 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.
Olympia Chimney Crown Repair: The Hempstead Owner’s Guide
We stock and install Olympia Chimney-compatible crown repair materials on our trucks, and a standard crown rebuild in Hempstead typically runs $850 – $1,650 installed, depending on chimney size and how much demolition the old crown requires. Most Hempstead homeowners first notice the problem the same way: a damp spot on the ceiling near the fireplace, a flaking white residue on the brick just below the crown, or a puddle of water in the firebox after a heavy Long Island rain. The crown is the concrete slab that caps the top of the chimney and keeps water out of the flue system – and once it starts to crack, water gets in fast, especially during a Hempstead winter where freeze-thaw cycles pry open small fissures into full breaks.
Which Olympia Chimney Models This Applies To
Olympia Chimney manufactures a range of chimney systems, but the crown repair work we do in Hempstead most often involves their stainless steel chase covers and multi-flue caps that sit atop prefabricated and masonry chimneys. If you have an Olympia chimney, look for the manufacturer’s tag on the pipe itself: the brand name, model series, and size (typically 6″, 8″, or 10″ inner diameter) are printed on a small metal label near the firebox or in the attic chase. Knowing whether you have a single-flue or multi-flue crown matters, because Olympia crown assemblies differ by flue count and pipe diameter, and installing the wrong one means water still finds a way in.
When we replace an Olympia crown, we use OLYMPIA OEM parts whenever they’re available, because the fit is exact and the material spec matches what the manufacturer designed. But here’s the thing: for most Hempstead homes built in the 1980s through 2000s, Olympia’s stainless steel crowns hold up well, and the failure is usually in the concrete wash or sealant around it, not the metal itself. In those cases, a quality aftermarket crown form from Copperfield or a custom-poured concrete crown with a flexible crown coat does the job without paying OEM markup. We’ll tell you which way to go, and we’ll show you why in writing before any work starts. Flint Chimney Co Hempstead is an independent service provider, not an authorized Olympia Chimney dealer, but we work on their systems constantly across Nassau County.
Styles & brands we work with





Signs Your Olympia Chimney Crown Repair Is Failing
- Water staining on the ceiling or wall near the chimney. This is the most common first sign in Hempstead homes. A cracked crown lets rainwater run down the inside of the flue chase, and it shows up as a brown or yellow stain on drywall. If you’re seeing this, the crown has already been leaking for weeks, not days.
- Spalling brick or flaking mortar near the top of the chimney. When water soaks into the brick below the crown and then freezes, the brick face pops off in sheets. You’ll see brick chips in your gutter or on the ground at the base of the chimney. This is freeze-thaw damage, and it gets worse every Hempstead winter.
- A white, chalky residue on the brick course right under the crown. That’s efflorescence – minerals left behind when water evaporates out of the masonry. It means water is actively moving through the brick. Hank Delano calls this “the chimney sweating out what it shouldn’t have swallowed.”
- Rust staining on the chimney chase or firebox floor. For Olympia systems with stainless steel components, a failing crown can let water pool around the damper or flue pipe, causing rust. If you see orange streaks on the metal, the crown has been compromised long enough to matter.
- A strong musty smell from the fireplace after a heavy rain. Wet creosote and damp masonry smell like a basement that’s been closed too long. It’s not just unpleasant – it means the flue is holding moisture, and that accelerates deterioration of the liner.
See the difference
Before
After
Before
After
Before
AfterReplacement Cost & What’s Included
In Hempstead, a full Olympia chimney crown replacement typically costs between $850 and $1,650 installed. The range depends on three things: chimney size (single-flue runs lower, multi-flue higher), access (a steep roof or a chimney over three stories adds labor time), and the condition of the existing crown (if it’s crumbling, demolition takes longer). We give you a written price before any work begins, and that price includes demolition of the old crown, new form construction if needed, the crown material itself, sealant, and full cleanup.
What a crown repair includes at Flint Chimney Co Hempstead: we remove the failed crown, inspect the flue tile tops and the top course of brick for water damage, rebuild the crown with a proper slope (1 inch of fall per foot is the minimum we’ll accept, more if the crown overhangs the brick), install a flexible crown coat to resist freeze-thaw cracking, and leave the site cleaner than we found it. Every crown repair carries our 365-Day Done Right Promise in writing. If it fails within a year, we return at no charge. That’s the Garrison Standard, and it’s not negotiable.
DIY or Call Us?
You can safely check the crown yourself from the ground with binoculars. Look for visible cracks wider than a nickel, missing chunks of concrete, or a crown that sits flush with the brick instead of overhanging it by at least 2 inches. Those are the signs that tell you a repair is overdue. But fixing a crown is not a ground-level job. It means working on a roof, often on a ladder, with mortar, forms, and sealant – and if that goes wrong, you’re looking at a fall or a crown that still leaks. This is one of those repairs where the cost of doing it twice, or doing it from an emergency room bed, makes the phone call worth it.
If you’re not sure whether your Olympia crown needs work, call us at (516) 559-6922. We’ll put a live person on the phone – 24/7, no voicemail tree – and schedule an inspection. The inspection gives you a written report with photos, and if the crown needs repair, a written price before we touch anything.
FAQs
A properly poured concrete crown with a flexible crown coat should last 15 to 25 years on a Hempstead chimney, but the freeze-thaw cycles here cut that down if the crown was poured too thin or without a proper overhang. We see crowns fail in 8 to 12 years when they were built flush with the brick or without a sloped top. If your home is over 20 years old and the crown has never been rebuilt, it’s on borrowed time.
Hairline cracks can sometimes be sealed with a flexible crown coat, and we’ll tell you honestly if that’s all you need. But once the crack is wide enough to slide a quarter into, or the concrete is crumbling at the edges, a patch won’t hold. Water will keep getting in, and you’ll pay twice. We’ll show you the camera footage and let you decide with the evidence in front of you. Call (516) 559-6922 for an inspection and we’ll tell you straight which category your crown falls into.
A standard single-flue crown replacement takes one day, including demolition, rebuild, and cleanup. Multi-flue chimneys or those with significant masonry damage below the crown can take two days. We arrive inside the window we give you, and the price on the invoice is the price you approved in writing.
Yes, our trucks carry Olympia Chimney-compatible crown forms, copper-topped crowns, and the sealants we trust, along with materials from DuraFlex, HeatShield, Gelco, and Copperfield. Most crown repairs are done same-day without a second trip for parts. If your chimney needs an Olympia-specific component that has to be ordered, we’ll tell you the timeline and the exact cost before we order anything.
Call (516) 559-6922 to schedule a crown inspection or get a free estimate on Olympia chimney crown repair in Hempstead. A live person answers, day or night, and the price we quote is the price you pay – in writing, before any work begins.
Written by Hank Delano, Owner, Flint Chimney Co Hempstead at Flint Chimney Co Hempstead, serving Hempstead and nearby areas.