Famco Chimney Cap & Crown Nationwide

Famco Chimney Cap & Crown in Reading: What to Know First

We install, replace, and repair Famco chimney caps and crowns in Reading, PA, and we do it as an independent Famco service provider, not a factory arm. Most Famco cap or crown work runs $185 to $640 depending on whether you need a simple cap swap or a full crown rebuild. You’ll get a straight answer before a single tool comes off the truck, and the number we quote on the phone is the number on your invoice.

Call (484) 209-0837

This page is for homeowners in and around Reading who own a Famco cap or crown and want to know what’s actually wrong with it, what it’ll cost to fix, and who to trust with the job. Wendell Pike and the Top Hat Chimney crew have been working on Berks County chimneys since 1999, and we’ve seen just about every way a Famco cap can fail. If you want to skip the reading and get an answer, call (484) 209-0837.

How Famco Products Fail - and How We Fix Them

Famco makes solid equipment, but nothing on a chimney lasts forever, especially in Reading’s weather. Here’s what we see most often with their caps and crowns:

• Famco round caps with riveted mesh screens. The 3-inch and 6-inch round caps with riveted side screens are the ones we replace most. After a few years of Reading freeze-thaw cycles, those rivets loosen, the mesh pops out, and squirrels and starlings get in. The fix is usually a replacement, not a patch job. We install a new Famco cap with welded mesh, not riveted, when the flue size allows.
• Famco multi-flue caps that lose their center brace. On wide chimneys, the multi-flue cap spans two or three flues and relies on a center brace to hold its shape. The brace corrodes first because it sits in the flue gap where rainwater sits too. Once it goes, the cap sags in the middle and water channels straight into the flue. We see this on older Mount Penn and Muhlenberg Township homes where chimneys predate modern cap hardware. We replace the brace with a galvanized one and re-bed the cap, which buys real time.
• Famco deluxe caps with draft regulators that seize up. The deluxe caps with adjustable draft controls work great until creosote and soot gum up the mechanism. Then the damper plate freezes half-open, and the fireplace smokes into the house. The fix is usually a pull-and-clean of the regulator assembly, not a new cap. That’s a job you don’t need to spend $400 on.
• Crown erosion under the cap. If you have a Famco cap on a chimney, the cap is doing its job up top, but the concrete or mortar crown underneath it might be crumbling. A loose cap that wobbles means the crown has softened underneath the mounting bracket. The bolts were tight when it was installed. The crown gives out first. In Reading, with our hard winters, that happens faster than in warmer climates. We rebuild the crown with a proper overhang and re-anchor the cap.
• Famco caps installed with the wrong flue measurement. We see DIY and handyman installs where a 6-inch Famco cap was clamped onto a 5.5-inch flue. It holds for a season, then wind catches it and it’s gone. That’s not a product failure. That’s a measuring failure. We field-measure every flue before we order or stock anything, because the difference between a 5-inch and 6-inch flue is a cap that stays and a cap in your neighbor’s yard.

Our Famco Chimney Cap & Crown Process

Here’s how a Famco job goes when you call Top Hat Chimney, from the first ring to the final cleanup:

1. 1
   You call and a live person answers. No phone tree, no call center. You’ll often get Wendell himself. We ask what’s going on, get the basics, and give you a straight answer about when the sweep can be there.
2. 2
   The sweep shows up and looks before he touches anything. He’ll inspect the cap, the crown, the flue from the top, and the firebox from the bottom. If it doesn’t need work, he’ll tell you that and shake your hand on the way out.
3. 3
   We show you what’s wrong. Camera footage and a plain-English verdict, every time, no exceptions. You’ll see what we see, and we’ll tell you what’s urgent, what can wait, and why.
4. 4
   Parts decision. If it’s a cap, we’ll tell you whether a Famco OEM replacement makes sense or whether a quality aftermarket cap fits better for less money. If it’s a crown, we’ll tell you whether we can coat it or need to rebuild it. You decide with real information, not pressure.
5. 5
   The work gets done right, and we clean up. New cap is mounted and sealed. Crown is rebuilt or coated. The whole roof area is swept clean, and we make sure nothing is left behind.
6. 6
   You get the 90-Day Done Right Promise in writing. If it’s not done right, one call brings Wendell back at no additional cost. That’s stamped on every job we finish.

What Famco Chimney Cap & Crown Costs in Reading

Here’s what we quote for Famco work, and you can hold us to it:

• Famco round cap replacement (3 to 6 inch flue): $185 to $260 installed
• Famco multi-flue cap (two to three flues): $340 to $520 installed
• Crown repair with elastomeric coating: $220 to $350
• Full crown rebuild with proper overhang and re-anchoring: $450 to $780
• Custom stainless steel cap for odd-shaped flues: $380 on up, quoted before we order

What moves the price: roof pitch, access difficulty, whether the flue is an odd size, whether the existing cap is rusted through or just loose, and whether the crown underneath is still solid. If the crown under your cap is shot, replacing just the cap is throwing money away. We’ll tell you that before we sell you either one.

Call (484) 209-0837 for an exact quote on your chimney. Estimates are free, and if you’re inside the county, there’s no trip charge.

Why Reading Homeowners Call Top Hat Chimney for Famco Work

We’re not a franchise that rotated into Reading last spring. We’re locally owned, owner-operated, and we’ve worked the same neighborhoods since 1999. Wendell Pike puts his name on the work, publishes his license number, and runs into you again at the hardware store on Saturday. Ask anyone on your street about us. That’s the kind of accountability a national outfit can’t offer.

Every Famco cap and crown job gets the 90-Day Done Right Promise in writing. If it’s not right, one call brings us back, no pushback, no charge. We also carry and service DuraFlex, HeatShield, and Gelco products, so if your Famco repair leads to a liner issue or a crown problem that needs a different material, we can handle it in the same visit instead of sending you to someone else. Live person answers every call, around the clock, and upfront pricing is delivered before work begins, every time.

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