How long chimney repairs take
How long do chimney repairs take?
The short answer
It depends on the repair. A flashing patch or a replacement pot is a short job once access is in place, while repointing or a partial rebuild takes longer. The wait before work starts is often longer than the work, because West Sussex asks for at least 10 working days' notice for a scaffold licence. We give you a timescale after the survey, once we have seen the stack.
What decides how long a chimney job runs, from the wait for scaffold to the weather, and why rushed mortar is a false economy.
The repair sets the time, not the chimney
Chimney work covers very different jobs, and the time follows the job. Replacing a cracked pot, or renewing the flaunching (the sloping mortar crown that holds it), is the lightest work. New flashings take longer, because old lead comes out, the mortar joints are raked back, and fresh lead is fitted and pointed in. Repointing a whole stack depends on its height and how many faces it has. A partial or full rebuild runs to several days, with bricklaying and then tiling or slating back round the new base.
One number for all of these would be a guess, and anyone offering it is guessing. After the survey we can tell you what the job is and how many working days it needs. Put that beside our guide to chimney repair costs, because time and price tend to move together, and ask for both before you decide. A job that needs the roof opened up around the base of the stack takes longer than one finished entirely from the top.
The wait before anyone climbs up
Most chimney jobs begin with scaffold, and scaffold over a pavement or road may need a licence. West Sussex County Council asks for at least 10 working days, counted from the day of application to the day the scaffold goes up. Over the border, Hampshire's county council allows no fewer than ten clear working days. Portsmouth's city council acts as its own highway authority. If the scaffold stands entirely on private land, no licence is involved and the start can come sooner. Whether that applies to your house is settled at the survey.
So when somebody says a chimney job takes two days, ask whether they mean from the day the scaffold is up. The licence wait is not a delay on our part, yet it is the one that surprises people. If a leak is coming in, the roof is made safe first, which may be a temporary measure during the wait. Our page on scaffolding for chimney repairs gives the licence detail.
Weather and the way mortar behaves
Mortar and lead go on outdoors, and the weather decides when that is sensible. Rain, strong wind and frost all stop work for good reasons. Wet brickwork will not take new mortar well, which is why a stack that has been soaked by a night of rain is often left to dry before pointing starts, high winds make working at height unsafe, and fresh mortar can be damaged if heavy rain washes over it before it has set.
On this coast, spells of driving rain or gales can shift a job by a day or more, and a good roofer would rather lose a day than lay mortar into the wrong weather. Lime mortar, used on older houses, gains strength more slowly than a cement mix, so it needs to stay protected and undisturbed for longer. Our page on lime mortar repointing explains why the slower mix suits old brick. A repair pushed through in bad conditions is the one most likely to fail early.
Faults found once the stack is open
Sometimes the view from the roof shows only part of the story. Once old flashings come away or crumbling pointing is cut out, the brickwork behind can turn out weaker than it looked, or a timber beside the stack may prove to be wet. That need not mean surprise bills, but it can mean a longer job. We stop and show you the photographs of what has been found before going further.
A stack patched before, or a flashing sealed over where it should have been renewed, is the usual place for extra work to turn up. The quote is one written total that follows the survey. If the stack proves to need more than the survey could reveal, we explain what and why before carrying on. Our pages on repointing and the stack rebuild show where that tends to happen.
Clearing up and what to watch afterwards
When the repair is done, the roof is checked for stray mortar and broken tiles, the scaffold is struck once all the work is complete, and the rubbish leaves with us. The photographs from each stage are yours to keep. If the repair was to stop a leak, keep an eye on the ceiling and the chimney breast through the next few wet spells and tell us if anything shows.
New mortar looks pale and patchy at first and weathers to match the old, so do not judge the finish on day one. A look at the stack with binoculars once a year is enough to catch the next fault early, and a few photographs kept in a folder make changes easy to spot. The main chimney repairs page lists every job we do, and our guide to how often to check a chimney explains what can be seen without leaving the garden.
Related questions
Chimney job timing
Can the work start the day after I accept the quote?
Rarely, if scaffold is needed, because the licence has a notice period. If a leak cannot wait, we make it safe first. Where the scaffold sits on your own land the start can be quicker. We give you the likely date at the survey.
Does rain stop a chimney repair part way?
It can. We stop when wind, rain or frost would harm the mortar or put the team at risk, protect the stack, and return when conditions allow. A day lost is better than a repair that has to be redone later.