Schenectady chimney service: Dr. Soot 'n Cinder for area code 518

What chimneys face in the 518/838 area

Geographically, 518/838 covers the Capital Region and northeastern New York, from Albany, Troy and Schenectady to Saratoga Springs, the Columbia County towns of Hudson, Chatham and Ghent, and north through the Adirondacks to Plattsburgh and Lake Champlain (with the 838 overlay). It is an old housing stock: of about 692,000 homes and apartments, roughly 65% were built before 1980 and 28% before 1940, and the median home dates from the 1960s. About 62% are single-family detached houses.

Albany is the capital of New York State and the seat and most populous city of Albany County. It sits on the west bank of the Hudson River about ten miles south of where the Mohawk joins it, and had 99,224 people at the 2020 census.

Heating season runs long. NOAA's 1991–2020 normals for Albany Airport, NY show about 6,357 heating degree days a year, a January average of 24.4°F, and about 59.2 inches of snow. Those freeze-thaw cycles slowly break down masonry. A cracked crown, spalling brick or a missing cap lets water in, and water is what does the most damage to a chimney.

By Census count, about 46% of households heat mainly with utility gas and about 21% with heating oil. Wood is the main heat in about 4.1%; most fireplaces here are used for comfort rather than everyday heat. An oil-fired boiler or furnace also needs a sound, clean flue, since soot and scale build up over a heating season. It sits in IECC climate zone 5A (76%), 6A (24%). Wood, gas or oil, the NFPA 211 standard says chimneys, fireplaces and vents should be inspected once a year.

Sources: Census ACS 2018–2022 (B25034, B25040, B25024); NOAA Climate Normals 1991–2020, Albany Airport, NY (USW00014735); IECC 2021 climate zones by county (PNNL-33270); NFPA 211; Wikipedia: Albany, New York.