About Mark Jason and NWI Chimney Sweep
A Crown Point native, 34 years in the chimney trade, running a company in his hometown that grows by referral.
By Mark Jason, owner of NWI Chimney Sweep · Crown Point native
Mark Jason, owner
Mark Jason owns NWI Chimney Sweep; he was born and raised in Crown Point, Indiana, and has swept chimneys for 34 years. That means he started as a young man and has stayed with the same trade his entire working life. He is 55 years old and a father of four: two girls and two boys.
Two beliefs shape how he runs the company. The first is that word-of-mouth referrals are the only advertising that really counts, because a neighbor has nothing to gain by recommending a contractor who let them down. The second is that trust is built through the community, one house at a time, by telling people the truth about their chimney even when the truth is “it is fine, see you next year”.
The company was named best chimney sweep company in NWI for 2023. Mark treats that as something to keep earning rather than something to frame.
What 34 years in one trade changes
Thirty-four years in one trade teaches a sweep to read why a chimney is failing, not only to brush it clean. Chimney work looks simple from the driveway: rods, a brush, a ladder. The judgment is in what you notice while you are there. Over three decades the materials in this trade changed more than most people realize. Stainless liners listed to UL 1777 became the normal answer for failed clay tile. Video scanning made it possible to see every joint of a flue instead of guessing from the top and bottom. High-efficiency gas appliances arrived with cooler exhaust that condenses inside old masonry flues built for hotter smoke.
Someone who has worked through all of that knows why an older chimney behaves the way it does and which modern fix suits it. A flat mortar wash on top of a 1950s stack is not a defect in workmanship; it is how crowns were commonly done, and it is why so many of them are cracked now. A fireplace that smoked from the day it was built usually has a flue too small for its opening, and no amount of sweeping will cure geometry.
How the company works
NWI Chimney Sweep works to NFPA 211, the national standard for chimneys, fireplaces, vents and solid-fuel-burning appliances. It is a standard we follow, and it sets the scope for each inspection level so that nothing depends on mood or schedule. For dryer exhaust we measure against IRC M1502, and for ductwork we follow the NADCA ACR standard.
The company is Insured & Bonded.
Calling is how nearly everything starts. The line at (219) 203-9797 is open 7 days a week, 7am to 9pm. Prices are not scattered around the site; each starting figure lives on the pricing page so there is a single reference for both of us.
Where we are and where we go
NWI Chimney Sweep is based at 1624 E Summit St, Crown Point, IN 46307, in the Lake County seat, the same city where Mark was born and raised. From there the crew reaches Munster and Highland, Merrillville and Hobart, Cedar Lake and St. John, and Portage and Valparaiso in Porter County. Crown Point has its own page: chimney sweep service in Crown Point.
Northwest Indiana is not one housing market, and its chimneys show it. The older towns have brick homes with masonry fireplaces and clay-tile flues that have seen fifty or sixty winters of freeze and thaw. The newer subdivisions further south lean toward factory-built fireplaces in framed chases and direct-vent gas units. Each needs a different eye, and we describe the differences in the homeowner chimney guides.
You may hear about us from a neighbor in person or in a local group on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Reddit or YouTube. However the name reached you, the next step is the same: pick up the phone and tell us what the fireplace is doing.
About the owner and the company
Who owns NWI Chimney Sweep?
Mark Jason owns NWI Chimney Sweep and runs it himself. He is 55 years old, a father of two girls and two boys, and has been in the chimney sweep business for 34 years. The company he owns is based in Crown Point and is Insured & Bonded.
Where did Mark Jason grow up?
Mark Jason grew up in Crown Point, Indiana, the Lake County seat, where he was born and raised. The shop is in Crown Point today, which is why the service area of NWI Chimney Sweep is made up of the towns around it rather than stretching toward Chicago or South Bend.
What does NWI stand for in the company name?
NWI stands for Northwest Indiana, the corner of the state along Lake Michigan that locals also call the Region. For NWI Chimney Sweep it means sixteen communities across Lake County and part of Porter County, from Munster to Valparaiso.
Where is NWI Chimney Sweep located?
NWI Chimney Sweep is located at 1624 E Summit St, Crown Point, IN 46307, in Lake County. All service is carried out at customers’ homes, so the phone is the best first contact; a map of the address is on the contact page.
How long has Mark Jason been a chimney sweep?
Mark Jason has been in the chimney sweep business for 34 years. In that time the trade moved from judging a flue by flashlight to scanning it with video cameras, and from patching clay tile to installing stainless liners listed to UL 1777, so his experience spans both the older chimneys and the modern fixes.
Which standards does NWI Chimney Sweep follow?
NWI Chimney Sweep works to NFPA 211, the national standard for chimneys, fireplaces and vents; it is a standard the company follows. Liners are chosen from products listed to UL 1777, dryer exhaust is judged against IRC M1502, and duct cleaning follows the NADCA ACR standard.
Why does NWI Chimney Sweep rely on word of mouth?
NWI Chimney Sweep relies on word of mouth because Mark Jason believes it is the fairest test of a contractor. A referral only happens when the work held up and the homeowner felt they were told the truth, so a company that depends on referrals has every reason to do both.
What should I know about NWI Chimney Sweep before hiring?
NWI Chimney Sweep is Insured & Bonded, is run by its owner Mark Jason, who has 34 years in the trade, works to the NFPA 211 standard and is open 7 days a week from 7am to 9pm. The company was also named best chimney sweep company in NWI for 2023.
Talk to the company Mark built.
Owner-run, Insured & Bonded, and on the phone every day between 7am and 9pm.
Call (219) 203-9797