From Hastings Ranch: Get the Critters Out, Then Close the Top
What Did You Hear Up There?
Scratching, chirping, a drip or a smell after rain: one line is plenty. We call back with a time to get on the roof.
Home Base: Hastings Ranch, Northeast Pasadena
Crosby Chimney Care is based in Hastings Ranch, the neighborhood in the northeast corner of Pasadena that Sierra Madre Boulevard splits into an upper and a lower half, with the San Gabriel Mountains and Mount Wilson to the north. Its tracts went up in the late 1940s and early 1950s, and Sierra Madre and Arcadia sit right beside it.
The calls we answer start with something an owner hears or finds: chirping behind the damper in spring, scratching after midnight, twigs on the grate, a sour smell after the first rain. We follow each of those up to the top of the chimney, looking for the way in.
So we climb up first, photograph the cap, crown and roofline metal, and work down to the firebox from there. An animal still inside leaves before anything is sealed, on its own or with a wildlife removal company. Then a stainless cap sized to the flue tile gets screwed down.
Four Rules We Keep Up There
They hold for a squirrel in a cold flue and for a cracked crown leaking into the attic.
Start at the Cap
A missing cap, a cracked crown or rusted roofline metal is where a lot of chimney trouble begins. We climb up there first, so the fix lines up with whatever is actually getting in.
Animals Leave First
No fire is lit and no flue is sealed while an animal is inside. It leaves on its own or a wildlife removal company takes it, and only then do we clean and cap. A day or two slower, and kinder to everyone.
Scope in Writing
Sweeps, inspections and caps are booked as set visits. Anything beyond that is written up after we have looked, and nothing gets added once the work begins.
Based in Hastings Ranch
We work out of Hastings Ranch in northeast Pasadena, under the San Gabriel Mountains, out to Sierra Madre, Arcadia, Altadena and San Marino. Open seven days, 7 AM to 7 PM.
What Lands in Your Inbox
Every visit closes with the same short photo set, and inspection notes follow the NFPA 211 levels.
Wings, Claws or Drips Overhead?
Call Crosby Chimney Care and describe the sound. We say what it is likely to be, whether to keep the damper shut, and when we can be on your roof.
Call (626) 433-8284