Smoke Coming Into The Room Instead Of Up The Chimney
Smoke rolling into the living room is a draft problem, and draft problems have a short list of causes. Most are fixable in one visit.
Four things cause almost all of it
Working out which one you have is the whole job. Guessing is how people pay for repairs they never needed.
Nests, leaves, a fallen tile, or an animal. This is the first thing we check and it is more common than people expect, especially after spring.
Buildup does not just catch fire — it physically shrinks the passage until the chimney cannot move enough air. A sweep fixes it.
Warped, rusted, or painted shut. Easy to miss and easy to repair.
Modern sealed homes, range hoods and bathroom fans can pull harder than the chimney pushes. The fix is usually a make-up air source, not chimney work at all — and any honest company will tell you that.
What your particular version means
Photographed, not guessed
When it happens, what it looks like, what changed. That alone narrows it down a long way.
Top to bottom, on camera. You see the actual cause on a screen rather than taking our word for it.
A written quote for the real fix, and an honest answer if the problem is not a chimney problem at all.
Six commitments, on every single job
The chimney trade has an upsell problem. These are the rules we hold ourselves to — read them, then hold us to them.
The number we quote is the number you pay. Our price never goes up once the technician is at your door.
You see what we see — every finding photographed, before and after. No trust-me diagnoses.
We tell you when your chimney is fine. Technicians are never paid to sell you repairs you don't need.
More than 25 years in the chimney trade. Around 10 Perfect Chimney technicians who live here — never a call centre, never a temp crew, never a subcontractor in an unmarked van.
Monday to Friday 7am–8pm and Saturday 9am–6pm. A real person answers — never a call centre, never an answering service.
Fully licensed and insured for every job we take, from a $99 sweep to a full masonry rebuild.
Rated 5.0 by nearly a thousand homeowners
Over 1,000 jobs completed across the Portland metro, rated 5.0 on Google and reviewed on Thumbtack, Yelp, Facebook and Nextdoor. Every figure here is one you can open and check yourself.
"Really nice guys, and really great work! 10/10 recommend."
GOOGLE REVIEW"Tim and Nate were wonderful. Will call for future maintenance!"
GOOGLE REVIEW"Great communication from start to finish. Our project and chimney cleaning were completed quickly."
GOOGLE REVIEW · CLEANING"We contacted Perfect Chimney to clean a gas fireplace flue. They were very responsive…"
YELP REVIEW · GAS FIREPLACEQuestions we get on this one
Is smoke in the house dangerous?
Smoke you can see is unpleasant. What you cannot see is the concern — carbon monoxide is odourless. If your fireplace is smoking into the room, stop using it and get the system inspected.
Will a sweep fix it?
Often, yes — if the cause is creosote or a blockage. If the cause is flue sizing or house pressure, sweeping alone will not solve it, and we will tell you that rather than sell you a sweep.
Can a chimney be too tall or too short?
Yes. Flue height and cross-section both have to match the fireplace opening. Undersized or oversized flues draft badly no matter how clean they are.
What does it cost to diagnose?
The inspection is $149 with a sweep, and it tells you which of these it actually is instead of guessing.
What usually fixes it
Thirty cities across Oregon & SW Washington
From Longview down to Salem. We are mobile — no storefront, no showroom markup, no trip fees. Same crew and same published pricing everywhere we work.
Request your estimate
Honest, upfront pricing. We reply fast — usually within the hour during the day.
