Chimney Caps & Crowns in DeKalb, IL

The cap and crown are your chimney’s roof. The crown is the concrete slab that sheds water off the top of the masonry; the cap is the metal hood over the flue opening that keeps out rain, animals and embers. Together they stop the water intrusion that causes most chimney damage. Imperial installs stainless caps, seals and rebuilds crowns, fits chase covers on prefab chimneys, and replaces failed dampers across DeKalb County.

Chimney caps

A stainless-steel cap keeps rain out of the flue, blocks birds, squirrels and raccoons from nesting inside, and stops burning embers from landing on your roof. The mesh sides also cut downdraft. It is a small part that prevents a long list of expensive problems.

Crowns

A cracked or sloped-wrong crown funnels water straight into the chimney’s masonry. We seal hairline cracks with a flexible crown coating or rebuild the crown entirely when it has failed, giving it proper overhang and slope to throw water clear of the brick.

Chase covers

Factory-built (prefab) chimneys use a metal chase cover instead of a masonry crown. Galvanized covers rust and streak the siding; we replace them with stainless covers that won’t corrode.

Dampers

A worn throat damper or a failed top-sealing damper wastes heat and lets in weather. We replace throat dampers and install top-mount, cap-style dampers that seal the flue tight when the fireplace is not in use.

Cap materials: why stainless beats galvanized

A chimney cap is cheap relative to the damage it prevents — but only if it is made of the right metal. Stainless steel and copper resist corrosion for decades; galvanized steel looks the same on day one but its coating breaks down within a few years, and then it rusts, leaks and streaks the masonry. We install stainless caps sized to your flue, with mesh strong enough to keep raccoons and squirrels out and a spark arrestor to stop embers reaching the roof. Spending a little more on stainless up front is the difference between one cap and a series of replacements.

What makes a crown last

The crown is the sloped slab that sheds water off the top of a masonry chimney, and the details separate one that lasts decades from one that fails in a few years. A properly built crown has a slope to drain water, an overhang with a drip edge to throw runoff clear of the brick, and an expansion joint around the flue so the crown and flue can move independently. Most failed crowns were poured flat and flush, so water pools and cracks the joint. We seal hairline cracks with a flexible weatherproof coating or rebuild a failed crown properly — one of the highest-value repairs a chimney can get, because it protects everything below it.

Chase covers and top-sealing dampers

Two related parts round out the top of the chimney. On factory-built chimneys, a metal chase cover replaces the masonry crown; galvanized covers rust and streak, so we replace them with sloped stainless covers that shed water and last. And where an old throat damper no longer seals, a top-mounted, cap-style damper closes the flue tight with a gasket when the fireplace is idle — keeping conditioned air in the home, blocking downdraft and odor, and doubling as a rain-and-animal cap. Both are small upgrades that solve leaks and energy loss at the same time.

Serving DeKalb County and beyond

Imperial Chimney Sweepers is based at 1600 E Lincoln Hwy in DeKalb and covers 20-plus surrounding towns — from Sycamore and Cortland to Sandwich, Genoa and Rochelle. See our full service area or explore related work: Chimney Repair Chimney Sweeping Chimney Inspection.

Insured & Bonded. Every job is done to NFPA 211 standards by the crew whose name is on the truck. Call (815) 449-4265 for a quote.