Sweep & inspection
Caps & crowns
Flue relining
Masonry repair
Gas fireplace serviceLevel 1 sweep and inspection to the NFPA 211 annual standard - flue, crown, cap, and flashing checked and photographed
Chimney sweep logs do not sweep chimneys. They loosen some creosote - which then falls where a brush and vacuum still have to collect it.
Olympia Chimney Chimney Cap Installation: The Houston Owner’s Guide
Chimney cap installation for Olympia Chimney systems in Houston typically runs $385 to $740 installed, depending on the cap model, flue size, roof access, and whether the existing mounting hardware has corroded to the point of needing replacement. Most single-flue caps we install are on the truck and can be completed in one visit, often within the same week you call. You usually discover the problem in one of two ways: you see rust stains streaking down the chimney chase, or you hear rain ticking against the fireplace damper during a storm. By the time either happens, the old cap has been quietly failing for a season or two.
Kindling Chimney Houston is an independent chimney service provider. We stock and install Olympia Chimney products because they hold up in Gulf Coast weather, but we are not affiliated with Olympia Chimney the manufacturer.
Which Olympia Chimney Models This Applies To
Olympia Chimney builds caps for two main system types: masonry chimneys with clay tile flue liners and factory-built (prefab) chimneys with round metal flues. The cap your home needs depends entirely on which system you have, and that’s where we see the most mismatched parts.
For masonry chimneys, Olympia’s standard line covers outside-mount caps that slip over the flue tile itself. These come in common tile sizes: 8×8, 8×13, 13×13, and 13×18. The gotcha: a 13×13 cap does not fit a 12×12 tile, even if it looks close from the ground. Houston homes built in the 1960s through 1980s often have odd-sized or slightly crumbled flue tiles, so we measure before we quote, never after.
For factory-built chimneys, Olympia’s round caps fit standard pipe diameters: 6″, 7″, 8″, and 10″. The mounting band tightens around the pipe with a worm-gear clamp, and that’s where most DIY installs go wrong. If the band is overtightened, it crimps the flue. If it’s undertightened, the cap rattles in wind and eventually works loose. We see both on Houston rooftops regularly.
On the OEM versus aftermarket question: for Olympia systems, we usually recommend genuine Olympia caps. The mounting hardware is engineered to match the pipe or tile dimensions exactly, and aftermarket caps we’ve used over the years tend to use thinner stainless or galvanized mesh that fails faster in Houston’s salt-humid air. A genuine Olympia cap with a stainless body and stainless mesh is the value play here, not the premium one.
Styles & brands we work with
Signs Your Olympia Chimney Chimney Cap Installation Is Failing
- Rust streaks on the chimney chase or flue. Galvanized caps eventually sacrifice their zinc coating to the elements, and once bare steel is exposed, rust starts running. In Houston’s humidity, this happens faster than most owners expect.
- Water in the firebox after heavy rain. This usually means the cap’s hood is missing, cracked, or the mesh has blown out. Rain entering directly through an uncapped or failed-cap flue will sit in the smoke shelf and firebox, rusting dampers and staining masonry.
- Birds or squirrels in the chimney. A missing or torn mesh panel is an open invitation. We have relocated more Houston squirrels than we care to count, and every one of them entered through a cap that looked fine from the ground but had a hole the size of a tennis ball.
- Debris in the flue during inspection. Leaves, twigs, and shingle granules accumulating in the flue are a sign the cap’s mesh is gone or the hood has shifted. We find this constantly on homes near mature live oaks in neighborhoods like Timbergrove and Braeswood Place.
- Loud wind noise or a rattling sound from the chimney. A cap that moves in wind is a cap that is about to leave. Loose mounting bands on factory-built round flues are the most common cause we see in Houston.
Replacement Cost & What’s Included
Here’s what Olympia Chimney cap installation costs in Houston right now, installed by us:
| Cap Type | Typical Installed Price |
|---|---|
| Single-flue masonry cap (8×8 to 13×13) | $385 – $520 |
| Large or odd-size masonry cap (13×18, custom) | $520 – $740 |
| Factory-built round cap (6″ – 10″) | $285 – $440 |
| Multi-flue or decorative hood cap | $740 – $1,200+ |
The range depends on roof pitch, chimney height, whether we can safely access with a standard ladder or need to set up roof brackets, and whether the existing mounting hardware is reusable. We write the price before any work begins, so you know the installed number before we touch the roof. That price includes the cap, hardware, removal and disposal of the old one, and a photo report of the finished installation.
Every Olympia cap install carries our 365-Day Done Right Promise. If the cap shifts, rattles, or leaks within a year, we come back and make it right. No fine print, no runaround.
See the difference
Before
After
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After
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AfterDIY or Call Us?
Here’s the honest split. You can safely check whether your cap is visibly damaged from the ground, and you can shine a flashlight up the flue from inside the firebox to look for daylight or debris. Those checks cost you nothing and help you describe exactly what’s happening when you call.
What we do not recommend is getting on a Houston roof to do this yourself. Chimney cap replacement means working at height, often on a sloped or tile roof, while handling a metal part with sharp edges. We have watched capable homeowners get halfway through this job and call us after realizing the cap size was wrong or the mounting band was stripped. At that point you’ve paid for the wrong part and spent an afternoon on the roof. Let a tech who does this weekly handle it. Call (254) 978-7413 and we’ll get you scheduled.
FAQs
A genuine Olympia stainless steel cap typically lasts 10 to 15 years in Houston’s humidity, while galvanized versions last 5 to 8 years. Coastal-adjacent neighborhoods with more salt in the air, like Clear Lake and Kemah, trend toward the lower end. We recommend stainless mesh and body for any Houston installation because the marginal cost buys years of service life. Call (254) 978-7413 if you want us to take a look at what you have.
Sometimes. If only the mesh is torn, we can often replace the mesh panel and resecure the hood for $95 to $180, which is far less than a full cap. But if the cap body is rusted through, the mounting band is fractured, or the hood has blown off, replacement is the honest fix. We will tell you what we found before we touch a thing, and we will never sell a full replacement when a repair does the job.
Most single-flue cap installations take 45 to 90 minutes from setup to clean-up. We bring shoe covers and drop cloths for the path to the roof access, and we take a photo of the finished work and the clean-up before we leave. The crew is background-checked, uniformed, and follows the C.A.R.E. values on every visit.
We keep the most common Olympia sizes on the truck: 8×8, 8×13, 13×13, and round caps in 6″, 7″, and 8″. Odd sizes and custom decorative caps are usually available from our Houston supplier within three to five business days. When we quote the job, we tell you then whether the cap is on the shelf or on order. Call (254) 978-7413 and we’ll check your size while you’re on the phone.
Talk to a Real Person About Your Chimney Cap
You don’t have to figure out Olympia cap sizing, roof access, or mounting hardware on your own. Call us at (254) 978-7413 and a live person answers, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We will ask a few questions about your fireplace and chimney, give you a straight installed price range for your situation, and schedule the visit. Danny Cortes built this company on one idea: tell the homeowner exactly what you found, exactly what it will take to fix it, and exactly what it will cost before a single brush is pulled. A chimney cap is a small part, but it does a big job for the family living around that fireplace.
Written by Danny Cortes, Owner & Lead Chimney Technician, Kindling Chimney Houston at Kindling Chimney Houston, serving Houston and nearby areas.