Des Moines fireplaces fight rain more than cold — months of wet weather driving water into crowns and flashing, rusting caps, and soaking flues that then smell damp at the first fire. Our techs diagnose yours on the spot, fix it with real parts, and leave it lighting first try.
Your information is kept private and used only for your fireplace service request.
The six services Des Moines homeowners call us for most — from a gas fireplace that will not light after a damp idle summer, to a rusted cap and cracked crown letting rain down the flue.
Repair
Fireplace Repair
Any fireplace, any failure — diagnosed first, then fixed with the right parts. Around Des Moines, corrosion, damp-season ignition failures and creosote-worn wood units top the repair list.
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Repair
Gas Fireplace Repair
Pilot out, remote dead, flame weak after a damp summer — the Des Moines gas calls we run every week. Pilot that won't stay lit, dead remote, weak or lazy flame: gas systems diagnosed safely and repaired to code.
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Cleaning & Care
Fireplace Cleaning
Soot, dust and that stale closed-up smell removed from the firebox, glass and burner — the clean that clears the mildew smell out of a firebox that sat wet since spring.
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Cleaning & Care
Fireplace Inspection
Firebox, flue, venting and controls checked end to end, with a plain-language report. One visit, one honest report — what is sound, what is not, and what can wait.
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Install & Replace
Fireplace Installation
A new gas fireplace or an outdoor fire feature, done right: sizing, venting, gas and electric runs, finishing — one crew, start to first fire. We handle the whole job — unit, venting, gas line, electric and finish work.
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Cleaning & Care
Fireplace Service & Maintenance
The annual service that keeps a Des Moines gas fireplace lighting first try: full clean, burner and pilot service, safety sensors tested, and a test fire before we leave. One visit a year is what stands between Des Moines homeowners and the October no-light call.
Get a free estimateNeed something else — a damper, a blower, a smoke problem, a bird in the flue? We cover all 27 fireplace specialties. Call (888) 257-9181 and describe it.
A fireplace in Des Moines spends its life wet — rain on the crown, damp in the flue, rust on every metal part — through a long gray heating season. This is what that climate actually does here, and what we check on every visit.
Months of rain test every seal on a chimney in Des Moines. Water works into cracked crowns, tired mortar and failed flashing, then shows up as stains, rust and a damp smell at the fireplace below. We trace the entry point from the top down and repair the actual source — not just the stain it left behind.
Wood heat is everyday heat here, and the local fuel is softwood — fir and pine that lay down creosote faster than hardwood, especially in stoves that smolder low overnight. In Des Moines that combination fills flues quickly and quietly. Regular cleaning is not cosmetic in this region; it is the fire prevention the service exists for.
Where the chimney meets the roof is where most leaks in King County begin. Flashing loosens, sealant dries and splits, and months of rain do the rest — water tracks down inside the wall and appears at the fireplace or the ceiling below. We inspect flashing on every visit and repair the failure at its source before rot sets in.
Buyers across Des Moines inherit fireplaces with no history — often in older homes where the chimney has seen decades of rain and more than one earthquake. Nobody can tell you from the living room whether the flue is sound. An inspection before the first fire tells you exactly what you have and what it needs to be safe.
Des Moines sits in King County, and the ZIP list at the bottom of this page covers 2 serviceable ZIP codes — 98148 through 98198. The closest served neighbors are Normandy Park, SeaTac, Burien, and every one of them is covered by the same crews, the same day, under the same number: (888) 257-9181.
Same-day service, free estimates, licensed & insured — and a fireplace that lights when you click the remote.
Because the flue sat wet for months. Damp creosote and mildew grow in a closed, moist flue over the summer, and the first fire pushes that sour smell straight into the room. A thorough cleaning clears it, and checking the cap and crown keeps rain — and the smell — from coming back next season.
Yes, before the next fire. Masonry chimneys in Washington crack in earthquakes in ways you cannot see from the room: hairline flue cracks, shifted bricks, opened mortar joints. A cracked flue can leak smoke and carbon monoxide into the wall cavity. An inspection checks the firebox, flue and masonry end to end and tells you plainly whether it is safe.
Usually rust. Dampers live in the wettest part of the system, and in Des Moines the rain-season moisture corrodes hinges and linkages until they seize — often half-open, which wastes heat and lets weather in all winter. Sometimes cleaning and freeing the mechanism fixes it; if the metal is rusted through, we replace the damper and check the cap above it.
Yes — gas inserts and log sets are the most common conversion we do in Des Moines. An insert is the efficient route: sealed against drafts, remote-lit, and no creosote, ash or hauling fir in from the rain. Start with a free estimate and we will measure your firebox, check the flue, and walk through the options honestly.
The moss itself is mostly a messenger: it means the chimney top stays wet, and a top that stays wet is one where crowns crack, mortar softens and caps rust faster. We clear the growth, then check the crown, cap and flashing underneath it — in King County, the damage hiding under moss is usually the real repair.
No — and be wary of anyone who does. Every fireplace fails differently, so a phone price is a guess that changes at your door. Our estimates are free: a tech looks at the actual problem, then gives you one clear price before any work starts.
Fireplace Team is a national company with local technicians serving Des Moines street addresses across the ZIP codes below — same-day service and free estimates, every day 8 AM – 8 PM. More of Washington is covered from our Washington page. The Des Moines list below covers 2 ZIP codes, 98148 through 98198.
Don't see your ZIP? Des Moines also uses P.O. Box and single-organization ZIP codes that have no street addresses — call (888) 257-9181 and we will confirm coverage for your street address on the call.
Also serving nearby: Normandy Park, WA · SeaTac, WA · Burien, WA · Tukwila, WA · Kent, WA · Federal Way, WA.
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