Chimney Service Areas in Northwest Indiana
Sixteen towns across Lake and Porter counties, each with its own housing stock and its own chimney habits.
By Mark Jason, owner of NWI Chimney Sweep · born, raised and based in Crown Point
One region, two kinds of chimney
Northwest Indiana has two kinds of chimney, older site-built masonry and newer factory-built metal, and the age of the house tells you which. Towns that grew with the steel mills in the first half of the last century, and the postwar suburbs that followed, are full of brick homes with site-built masonry fireplaces and clay-tile flues. Their issues are the slow ones: eroded mortar, cracked crowns, tile joints that have opened, furnace flues never resized after a high-efficiency upgrade.
Subdivisions built in recent decades, in places such as St. John and Winfield, more often have factory-built fireplaces inside framed, sided chases, or direct-vent gas units with no chimney at all. There the trouble is rusted chase covers, cracked refractory panels, and gas ignition parts. Both worlds share the same weather: lake-effect snow, hard freezes after wet thaws, and sticky summers.
Lake County towns
Twelve of our sixteen communities are in Lake County, from Munster on the Illinois border to Hobart, Lake Station and Winfield. Build years quoted below are Census ACS median-year-built figures.
Merrillville. Crown Point’s neighbor to the north. The Census median year built here is 1978, in step with the town’s 1971 incorporation, so a typical call is likely to be a brick-faced fireplace still on its original clay liner. Merrillville chimney sweep details.
Munster. Directly on the Illinois border, with a median build year of 1972. Masonry stacks of that age may carry a fireplace flue and a furnace flue side by side, and one cracked crown can leak into both. Chimney service in Munster.
Highland. A Census median build year of 1966 makes this some of the older suburban housing we visit, with chimneys old enough for mortar joints to be past their best. Tuckpointing before bricks loosen is the economical move. Highland chimney sweeping and repair.
Schererville. Long nicknamed the Crossroads, with a median build year of 1988, so masonry and prefab fireplaces can turn up on neighboring streets. Knowing which one you own is the first question we ask. Schererville fireplace and chimney service.
St. John. Half the homes here were built in 2002 or later, according to Census figures, so gas fireplaces and framed chases are the likely finds. Expect pilot and thermopile faults and rusting chase covers rather than failed mortar. St. John chimney and gas fireplace help.
Crown Point. The county seat, Mark’s hometown and where the shop is. Older homes near the courthouse square can have tall, unlined or early clay-lined chimneys, yet the citywide median build year is 1991 because of the newer subdivisions around them. Chimney sweep in Crown Point.
Cedar Lake. A lake town with resort-era roots that incorporated only in 1967. Cottages turned into year-round homes may have had wood stoves or fireplaces added along the way, and such retrofits deserve a camera inspection. Cedar Lake chimney inspection and sweeping.
Brunswick. An unincorporated Hanover Township community with no Census housing figures of its own. Where a rural property heats seriously with wood, steady burning builds creosote far faster than occasional fires do. Brunswick wood stove and chimney service.
Ross. An unincorporated community in Calumet Township with the oldest housing on our list: a Census median build year of 1958. Houses of that age may vent a newer furnace or water heater into a masonry flue sized for a far hotter appliance. Chimney service for Ross.
Hobart. A city with a brickmaking past, remembered in the high school’s Brickies nickname, and a median build year of 1972. Its older masonry is usually worth maintaining rather than replacing. Hobart chimney repair and sweeping.
Lake Station. Once called East Gary, with a median build year of 1962. In housing of that age a chimney may vent the furnace and water heater as well as any fireplace, which makes a deteriorated flue liner a carbon monoxide matter, not a cosmetic one. Lake Station chimney and liner service.
Winfield. Incorporated in 1993, with a median build year of 2002. Expect newer equipment: prefab fireplaces, gas units and dryer vent runs that should be measured against the IRC length limit. Winfield fireplace and vent cleaning.
Porter County towns
In Porter County NWI Chimney Sweep serves Portage, South Haven and Valparaiso, all reached from the same Crown Point base. To schedule in any of them, call (219) 203-9797.
Portage. Porter County’s largest city reaches the Lake Michigan shore, where chimneys face lake-effect snow and wind-driven moisture head-on. The median build year is 1979. Portage chimney sweep and waterproofing.
South Haven. A census-designated community in Portage Township, served by Portage schools, rather than a town of its own. With a median build year of 1971, original caps and crowns are worth checking. South Haven chimney service.
Valparaiso. The Porter County seat, exposed to the county’s lake-effect snow bands. Historic districts near downtown and a citywide median build year of 1979 mean older and newer chimney types can share a single day’s route. Valparaiso chimney cleaning and inspection.
On the county line
Lakes of the Four Seasons is a private lake community, founded in 1966, that lies partly in Lake County and partly in Porter County. The line even splits its schools between Crown Point and Boone Grove, but one crew serves all of it. With a median build year of 1981, original caps and chase covers are due a close look. Lakes of the Four Seasons chimney care.
The same services everywhere
All seven NWI Chimney Sweep services are available in every one of the sixteen towns, at the same starting prices: sweeping, inspection, masonry repair, relining and the rest described in the services overview. Starting figures are identical across the area and are published on the pricing page.
Service area questions
Which counties does NWI Chimney Sweep cover?
NWI Chimney Sweep covers Lake County and part of Porter County, Indiana. Twelve of the sixteen listed communities are in Lake County, three (Portage, South Haven and Valparaiso) are in Porter County, and one, Lakes of the Four Seasons, straddles the line between them.
Is Lakes of the Four Seasons in Lake County or Porter County?
Lakes of the Four Seasons is in both: the community spans the county line, with part in Lake County and part in Porter County. That makes no difference to chimney service, because the same NWI Chimney Sweep crew from Crown Point covers the whole of it.
Why do chimneys near Lake Michigan wear out faster?
Chimneys near Lake Michigan wear out faster because of moisture and temperature swings. Lake-effect snow and wind-driven rain saturate brick and mortar, and winter here crosses the freezing point again and again. Water that freezes inside masonry expands and breaks it from within, which shows up as spalled brick and cracked crowns.
Are chimneys in newer south-county subdivisions different from those in older towns?
Usually, yes. Newer south-county homes tend to have factory-built metal fireplaces in framed chases or direct-vent gas units, while older towns have site-built masonry chimneys. The first group needs chase covers, panels and gas parts looked after; the second needs mortar, crowns and liners.
Do unincorporated places like Brunswick and Ross get the full range of chimney services?
Yes, unincorporated communities such as Brunswick and Ross get every service NWI Chimney Sweep offers. Being outside town limits changes nothing about the work, and rural properties that heat steadily with wood often benefit most from regular sweeping because constant burning builds creosote quickly.
Where does the NWI Chimney Sweep crew set out from?
The NWI Chimney Sweep crew sets out from Crown Point, the Lake County seat, where the shop is located and where owner Mark Jason was born and raised. From that one base the same crew travels to all sixteen listed communities in Lake and Porter counties.
Do the 7am to 9pm hours apply to every town?
Yes, the same hours apply in every town NWI Chimney Sweep serves. The company is open 7 days a week from 7am to 9pm across the whole area, with no shorter schedule for outlying communities. Call (219) 203-9797 to arrange a day.
I live just outside one of the listed towns. Will you come?
Quite possibly. The sixteen names are where NWI Chimney Sweep works routinely, not a hard border. Phone with your location and a description of the job, and you will get a straight yes or no based on the distance and that day’s route.
Tell us your town and what the chimney is doing.
One Crown Point crew covers all sixteen communities, seven days a week, 7am to 9pm.
Call (219) 203-9797