Can I just wait for it to leave?

Sometimes an adult bird finds its way out, but a nest, chicks or a raccoon will not. And a carcass left in the flue blocks it and smells. The safe answer is to have it looked at rather than guess.

Is it legal to remove a nest?

In many places nesting birds are legally protected, which is why the species is identified before anything is done. Where it is needed, a wildlife specialist handles the eviction.

Do I need a permit in Mount Vernon?

In New York, permits are issued locally by the municipal building department and code enforcement officer, not by a state agency. Routine sweeping and inspection generally do not require one, but structural masonry work above the roofline usually does. Call the Mount Vernon building department before that kind of work begins.

Is a chimney sweep licensed in New York?

New York does not issue a statewide license for chimney sweeping, inspection or masonry repair; it is handled at the city or county level. Westchester County runs its own home improvement contractor licensing program, so verify current requirements with the county consumer affairs or licensing office.

How do I know what was found?

Ask the technician to show you the camera footage of the flue and to put the reasoning for any recommended work in writing. You are entitled to see what the inspection found before you approve anything.

Who is One Call Chimney?

We are a referral and scheduling service that arranges chimney work with independent sweeps and masons across all fifty states. We are not the contractor and we do not perform the work ourselves.

Something living up there in Mount Vernon, NY

You hear scratching, chirping or flapping behind the firebox. Something has got into your chimney. Most of the time it is a bird that dropped down an open flue, or a raccoon or squirrel that climbed in and could not climb back out. Sometimes it is a nest built on the smoke shelf, and the noise is chicks. Either way, the flue is now blocked by a body or by nesting material, and that blockage is the real problem.

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Mount Vernon is a city of pre-WWII brick, stucco and wood-frame homes, and masonry chimneys with original fireplaces are common in the older single-family areas. A lot of those flues have never had a cap fitted, or had one that rusted off years ago. An open flue is a dry, sheltered, chimney-shaped hole in the top of a warm building. Birds and animals treat it exactly the way you would expect. Add New York's long heating season — roughly October through April — and a flue that sits damp and unused all summer, and you get an opening that is attractive to wildlife and easy to get into.

While you wait — please don't

Do not light a fire. Lighting a fire to drive an animal out is cruel, and burning dry nesting material packed into a flue is a common cause of chimney fires.
Stop using the fireplace until it is clear. A nest, a carcass or a trapped animal blocks the flue, and a blocked flue can push smoke and carbon monoxide back into the room.
If anyone feels sick, get out. Headache, dizziness, nausea or a CO alarm sounding means everyone leaves the house and you call 911 from outside.
Do not reach in or handle droppings. Droppings carry disease, and a frightened animal in a tight space will bite or scratch.
Do not assume you can remove a nest yourself. In many places nesting birds are legally protected, so the species needs identifying before anything is touched.

What the technician does

The animal is identified firstNothing is done until the technician knows what is up there and whether it is nesting. The approach for a trapped bird is not the approach for a raccoon with young.
Removal or humane evictionThe animal is removed or humanely evicted. Where the species requires it, that is done with a wildlife specialist rather than by force.
Nesting material and debris come outSticks, leaves, feathers and droppings are cleared from the smoke shelf and flue. This is the part that would have burned if you had lit a fire.
The flue is swept and inspectedOnce it is empty, the flue gets swept and inspected so you know whether the liner, crown and brickwork were damaged by what was living in there.
A cap with mesh is fittedA properly sized cap with mesh is the fix that stops it happening again. An uncapped flue is the whole cause of this problem.
You get the price before any work startsThe technician inspects the chimney and gives you a price. You approve it first, and nothing begins until you do.

Why this happens in Mount Vernon, NY

Spring is the peak. That is when birds nest, and an uncapped Mount Vernon flue is a ready-made cavity above a warm house. If you are in Fleetwood, Chester Heights, Vernon Heights or anywhere on the North Side with a century-old masonry stack, the odds of an open or failing flue top are higher simply because of the age of the brickwork. Mount Vernon's freeze-thaw cycles are tough on crowns and mortar joints, and a cracked crown or a missing cap leaves the opening wide for whatever wants it.

The city is one of the most densely built in Westchester, with a lot of two- and three-family conversions on tight lots. That often means more than one flue on a single stack, and animals getting into a flue that nobody uses — an old oil or gas venting flue, or a fireplace that has not been lit in years. Humid summers statewide keep unused flues damp, which is why an abandoned flue can smell and stain even before anything moves in. Demand here climbs in early fall as people service chimneys before the first freeze, so if you can deal with this before the heating season, do.

Questions people ask

Can I just wait for it to leave?: Sometimes an adult bird finds its way out, but a nest, chicks or a raccoon will not. And a carcass left in the flue blocks it and smells. The safe answer is to have it looked at rather than guess.
Is it legal to remove a nest?: In many places nesting birds are legally protected, which is why the species is identified before anything is done. Where it is needed, a wildlife specialist handles the eviction.
Do I need a permit in Mount Vernon?: In New York, permits are issued locally by the municipal building department and code enforcement officer, not by a state agency. Routine sweeping and inspection generally do not require one, but structural masonry work above the roofline usually does. Call the Mount Vernon building department before that kind of work begins.
Is a chimney sweep licensed in New York?: New York does not issue a statewide license for chimney sweeping, inspection or masonry repair; it is handled at the city or county level. Westchester County runs its own home improvement contractor licensing program, so verify current requirements with the county consumer affairs or licensing office.
How do I know what was found?: Ask the technician to show you the camera footage of the flue and to put the reasoning for any recommended work in writing. You are entitled to see what the inspection found before you approve anything.
Who is One Call Chimney?: We are a referral and scheduling service that arranges chimney work with independent sweeps and masons across all fifty states. We are not the contractor and we do not perform the work ourselves.

One call

Call (866) 576-7943 and we will arrange for an independent chimney technician to come out to your Mount Vernon home. The estimate is free, and you approve the price before any work starts.

Call now · (866) 576-7943

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One Call Chimney arranges the visit; the technician does the work and gives you the price.