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.
Famco Chimney Cap Installation: The Fort Worth Owner’s Guide
If you’ve got a Famco chimney cap that’s rusted through, blown off in a Texas storm, or letting rain pour down your flue, here’s the short version: we stock Famco-compatible caps and install them throughout Fort Worth, with most installations running $225 to $450 depending on cap size, roof pitch, and whether the existing mounting hardware is salvageable. Most jobs are completed in a single visit, and you’ll get a written price before we touch anything. Owners usually discover the problem one of two ways: a rust stain running down the chimney chase, or water pooling in the firebox after a heavy rain.
Hadley Chimney Fort Worth is an independent chimney service company, not affiliated with Famco. We carry their products because they hold up to North Texas weather better than most.
Which Famco Models This Applies To
Famco makes three chimney cap lines we install most often across Fort Worth: the SC series (single-flue caps with expanded metal mesh sides), the MC series (multi-flue caps that span the entire chimney crown), and the draft-increasing DC series, which is less common but shows up on older homes near TCU and Mistletoe Heights. Each series uses a different mounting method, and here’s the gotcha most homeowners hit: the SC and DC series bolt to the flue tile or chase cover with tension screws, while MC caps sit on the crown and are secured with adhesive or tap-cons. You can’t swap one for the other without modifying the crown.
To identify your Famco cap, look for a stamped model number on the underside of the lid or on the base rim. If that’s gone, measure the outside dimensions of your flue tile (SC series) or the full crown width and length (MC series). Famco builds sizes in half-inch increments, so a 13″ x 13″ flue gets a cap sized 13.5″ to 14″ wide to allow the mesh to slip over the tile. We keep common Fort Worth sizes on the truck: 13×13, 13×18, 17×17 single-flue, plus adjustable multi-flue bases. Odd sizes like oval flues or old 9×13 tiles on 1960s ranch homes in Wedgwood usually require a special order, which takes three to five business days.
Styles & brands we work with
Signs Your Famco Chimney Cap Installation Is Failing
Here’s what we see on service calls around Fort Worth when a Famco cap has reached the end of its useful life:
- Rust bleeding down the chimney chase or crown. Famco caps are galvanized steel with a powder-coat finish, but once the coating gets scratched during a hailstorm or a tree branch scrape, the underlying steel starts oxidizing. The rust streaks are cosmetic at first, but the cap is losing structural integrity underneath.
- Water in the firebox after rain. This almost always means the cap lid is compromised, the mesh has pulled away from the base, or the mounting screws have backed out and the cap is tilted. Water follows the path of least resistance straight down your flue.
- Birds or squirrels in the chimney. The mesh on Famco caps is designed to keep animals out, but a failed cap with a bent corner or detached panel gives critters an open door. If you hear scratching in the flue, your cap has failed at its primary job.
- Loose or rattling cap during high winds. Fort Worth gets 30+ mph gusts regularly in spring. A cap that’s properly tensioned shouldn’t move. If you hear metal clanking on the roof, the screws have wallowed out their holes in the flue tile.
- Visible daylight through the cap from below. If you shine a flashlight up from the firebox and can see light coming through gap in the mesh or lid, the cap is no longer sealing. That’s the clearest sign it needs replacement rather than adjustment.
See the difference
Before
After
Before
After
Before
AfterReplacement Cost & What’s Included
Installed Famco chimney cap pricing in Fort Worth breaks down like this:
| Service | Typical Price |
|---|---|
| Famco SC single-flue cap, installed | $225 – $320 |
| Famco MC multi-flue cap, installed | $350 – $450 |
| Haul-away of old cap and mounting hardware cleanup | Included |
| Same-day replacement (commonly stocked sizes) | Included |
What drives the range: roof steepness (a 10/12 pitch on an older Arlington Heights two-story costs more in labor than a low-slope ranch), whether the flue tile is cracked and needs a chase cover adjustment, and whether you want stainless steel instead of standard galvanized. Stainless adds roughly $80 to $120 but is worth it in Fort Worth, where spring hail and summer humidity accelerate corrosion on galvanized parts. Every installation includes a written price before work starts, photos of the old cap before removal and the new cap after installation, and our 365-Day Done Right Promise: if the cap shifts, loosens, or fails within a year, we return and fix it at no charge.
DIY or Call Us?
You can safely do the diagnostic work from the ground: check for visible rust, tilt, or missing mesh panels from the yard or with binoculars. What most homeowners shouldn’t do is get on a roof with a drill to replace a chimney cap. Famco caps on Fort Worth homes sit on flue tiles that are often 15 to 30 years old, and one wrong step or a slipped drill against brittle tile means a cracked flue liner, which is a much bigger repair than a cap swap. We also see DIY installations where the cap is undertightened and blows off within a season, or overtightened and cracks the tile. Our techs are background-checked, uniformed, and arrive in a tracked window with live arrival times, so you’re not stuck at home all day waiting. If you’d rather keep your feet on the ground, call (682) 900-6393 and we’ll get you on the schedule.
FAQs
A galvanized Famco cap typically lasts 8 to 12 years in North Texas, while stainless steel versions routinely last 20 years or more. The accelerated wear factor here is hail: a single serious spring storm can put small dents in the lid that become rust points. We recommend checking the cap after any major hail event. Call (682) 900-6393 and we’ll give you an honest assessment of whether it needs replacing now or can wait.
In most cases, no. The failure points on a Famco cap are the spot welds where the mesh meets the base, and the tension screws that bite into the flue tile. Once those welds break, rewelding costs more than a new cap. The exceptions are minor: a bent mesh panel can sometimes be reshaped, and loose tension screws can be retightened if caught early. But once rust moves in, replacement is the cheaper long-term fix. We’ll show you photos of the damage before recommending anything. Every estimate is free.
A standard Famco cap replacement takes 45 to 90 minutes from ladder-up to ladder-down. That covers removing the old cap, chipping away any old sealant on the crown, dry-fitting the new cap, deploying the tension screws to proper torque, and doing a final visual check from multiple angles. If we’re also applying crown sealant or resetting flashing, add another 30 minutes. We’ll text you before-and-after photos when it’s done, and you’ll get a digital invoice you can pay from your phone.
We keep the most common Famco SC and MC sizes on the truck at all times, so in most Fort Worth neighborhoods we can complete the replacement same day without a prior site visit. If you have an unusual flue size, an oval liner, or a custom multi-flue span, we’ll measure on the first visit, order the correct cap, and return to install it within a week. We’ll confirm which scenario you’re in before we come out. Call (682) 900-6393 to talk it through.
Written by Cory Mitchell, Owner, Hadley Chimney Fort Worth at Hadley Chimney Fort Worth, serving Fort Worth and nearby areas.