Leaning and crumbling chimneys
Independence Demolition Pros: Chimney Removal in Independence, Missouri
Brick chimneys that have outlived the furnace they vented, taken down to the roofline or all the way to the footing, with the roof patched and the brick hauled or saved.
- Independence and 10 towns within 20 miles
- Written price before any work starts
- City permit, utility and asbestos steps explained
- Local, licensed, insured contractors
Independence Demolition Pros connects Independence owners with local contractors for chimney removal, a job the city's housing stock produces steadily: the 1910s to 1930s houses of Englewood, Procter, Mount Washington and Fairmount, and the 1950s and 1960s ranches across the rest of the city, were built with brick chimneys for coal and gas furnaces that have long since been replaced by direct-vent equipment. What is left is a stack of unlined brick, mortar washing out, leaning a little more each winter.
Repointing a chimney nobody uses costs $800 to $2,000 every decade or so and does nothing about the flashing leak at its base; taking it down to the roofline once, at $300 to $6,000, ends the leak and the maintenance together.
What it costs
$300 to $6,000
The published national range for chimney removal (Fixr). Taking a small stack down to the roofline and closing the roof sits near the bottom; a full removal of a tall exterior chimney to the footing, with the wall and the floors patched where it passed through, sits near the top. Interior chimneys that run through finished rooms cost more than exterior ones.
Calls answered Monday to Friday 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Chimneys that have reached the end
- A visible lean away from the house, with the flashing pulled open at the roof
- Mortar joints washed out so bricks shift under a hand
- Spalled brick faces and chunks on the roof or the ground after freeze-thaw
- Water stains on the ceiling or the chimney breast after rain
- A furnace and water heater that vent elsewhere, leaving the flue dead
- A roof replacement coming up, which is the cheapest moment to lose the chimney
To the roofline or to the footing
Most chimneys come down to just below the roof deck. The brick is taken apart by hand from a ladder or a lift, the hole in the roof is framed in, sheathed and shingled to match, and the flue below is capped so it cannot draw. A full removal continues inside the house, through the attic, the rooms and the basement, to the footing, which opens walls and floors on every level and is usually done during a gut remodel. The quote names which, and whether the brick is hauled to a roll-off dumpster as debris or stacked for reuse, and any steel flue liner goes to scrap.
- Roofline
- Brick down to below the deck, roof framed and shingled, flue capped
- Footing
- Full removal through every floor, walls and floors patched
- Permit
- Ask the City when the roof structure is opened; usually part of a roofing or remodel permit
Why old Independence chimneys fail
Unlined brick chimneys built for coal and later used for gas take on moisture from the exhaust, and the freeze-thaw cycles of a Missouri winter pop the brick faces and wash the lime mortar out of the joints. A chimney that no longer carries heat never dries, so the damage runs faster once the furnace is replaced. Lean follows, then the flashing opens, then the leak.
Chimney leaning farther every winter?
Say whether it is on an outside wall or through the house, how tall it is above the roof, and whether a roof job is coming. A local contractor prices the removal and the roof closure in writing.
Call (816) 846-2347Interior chimneys and old furnaces
A chimney running up through the middle of a 1920s house often has the old coal furnace's breeching still attached in the basement, and sometimes asbestos insulation on it. Missouri rules apply to that material like any other, so the crews we work with test before they disturb it. The asbestos page covers what gets sampled; the interior demolition page covers the gut that a full chimney removal usually rides along with.
Chimney removal in the towns around Independence
The same stacks stand on the 1950s ranches of Raytown and Gladstone and the older houses of Liberty. A chimney often comes down with a garage demolition or a roof replacement, when the lift and the dumpster are already on site.
Chimney Removal available in
Frequently asked questions
What owners ask before a teardown
How much does chimney removal cost in Independence?
The published national range is $300 to $6,000. Down to the roofline with the roof closed sits near the bottom; a full removal to the footing through finished rooms sits near the top.
Do I need a permit to remove a chimney?
When the roof structure is opened and reframed, Independence treats it as part of a roofing or remodel permit. Ask Community Development before the work starts.
What are the signs a chimney should be removed rather than repaired?
A lean, washed-out mortar, spalled brick, water stains at the chimney breast, and a flue nothing vents through. If the furnace and water heater vent elsewhere, the chimney has no job left.
Can the chimney stay if it leaks?
Flashing can be repaired, but a leaning or crumbling stack keeps opening it. Most owners take it to the roofline at the next roof replacement and end both problems.
Is there asbestos in an old chimney?
Not in the brick, but often on the old furnace breeching and pipe connected to it in the basement. Those are tested before they are disturbed, as Missouri rules require.