Somebody told you the chimney needs an inspection, and then they said a number after it. Level 1, Level 2, occasionally Level 3. The number isn't a grade, and a higher one doesn't mean your chimney is in worse shape.
Each level is tied to a circumstance: annual use, a sale, a fire, a new appliance. The circumstance decides the level, and knowing which one you're in saves you from paying for more than you need or accepting less than the situation calls for.
Chimney inspection levels come from NFPA 211, the national standard. A Level 1 covers the readily accessible areas of a chimney still in the same service. A Level 2 adds attics, crawl spaces, basements and a camera scan of every flue, and a home sale requires one. A Level 3 opens up concealed areas.
The standard the three levels come from
The levels aren't a marketing invention. NFPA 211, the National Fire Protection Association's Standard for Chimneys, Fireplaces, Vents, and Solid Fuel-Burning Appliances, sets them out in Chapter 15, and Table 15.2.1 in that chapter is the actual decision table. Anyone quoting you a level is working from it, whether they name it or not.
Table 15.2.1 sorts the decision into three rows worth understanding, because together they explain why two houses with identical-looking chimneys can need different levels.
Scope
A Level 1 looks at readily accessible areas of the chimney, structure and flue, checks for obstruction and combustible deposits, and covers basic appliance installation and connection. A Level 2 extends that to accessible portions of the chimney structure and all enclosed flues, clearances from combustibles, and whether each flue is the right size for what's connected to it.
Degree of access required
A Level 1 stays with what can be reached without taking anything apart. A Level 2 reaches into accessible attics, crawl spaces and basements, and uses video scanning. A Level 3 reaches concealed areas and permits removal of parts of the building or the chimney, but only as much as it takes to see the area in question.
Circumstances
The standard is explicit that the situation sets the level rather than preference, and it also says nothing prevents an inspector from examining part of a chimney at a higher level than the table requires.
Level 1: the routine check on an unchanged chimney
A Level 1 applies when the chimney is doing the same job it has always done, with the same appliance, and you want confirmation that it's still fit for service.
NFPA 211 calls for a Level 1 during the annual inspection, during routine cleaning of a flue, and when an appliance is swapped for one of similar type, input rating and efficiency. The inspector examines readily accessible portions of the chimney plus the accessible parts of the appliance and its connection, confirms the flue is free of blockage and combustible buildup, and looks over the firebox and smoke chamber for damage.
One practical detail decides whether a Level 1 is enough for you. Nothing is opened up. Panels, doors and coverings stay on unless they're already being opened for another task. So a Level 1 tells you the chimney is in the shape it appears to be in, which is exactly what most households need most years.
Level 2: the one a sale or a change triggers
A Level 2 is required, not merely suggested, in four situations named in the standard.
A property changes hands
NFPA 211 requires a Level 2 upon the sale or transfer of a property. Buying a house with a fireplace puts you squarely here, and a basic visual pass won't produce what a closing needs.
The appliance or the flue changes
Adding or removing a connected appliance counts. Swapping one in of a different type, input rating or efficiency counts. Relining a flue or replacing a flue lining calls for a Level 2 beforehand.
Something happened
A building or chimney fire, a weather or seismic event, or any other incident likely to have damaged the chimney moves you to a Level 2.
A Level 1 could not settle the question
Where a Level 1 is not sufficient to determine whether the chimney is serviceable, the standard points to a Level 2.
The scope grows accordingly. Everything in a Level 1, plus locations inside attics, crawl spaces and basements that can be reached without destroying permanently attached parts of the building, plus a look at the internal surfaces of the flue liners using image scanning equipment. The camera is what people remember, and it's the part no visual inspection can substitute for.
Level 3: the one that opens up concealed areas
A Level 3 is for concealed areas, and the standard limits it to areas suspected of damage or malfunction that a Level 1 or Level 2 could not properly evaluate.
Two circumstances call for one: investigating a building or chimney fire, weather event or other incident known to have caused damage, or a hazard that a Level 1 or Level 2 turned up and couldn't fully evaluate without getting behind something.
Nobody orders a Level 3 to be thorough. A Level 3 can require removal or destruction of permanently attached portions of the chimney or the building, which is why it's reserved for cases where the evidence already points at a hidden problem.
Which level do you actually need?
Start with why the question came up at all, because the standard works the same way.
Nothing has changed and you burn a few fires each winter, so an annual Level 1 is the answer. You're buying or selling, so it's a Level 2, and asking for one by name is reasonable. A chimney fire or a storm is in the story, so a Level 2 at minimum, escalating if the inspector cannot see enough. A Level 1 or Level 2 already found something and could not get to it, so a Level 3.
Worth knowing: the standard tells an inspector who can't finish the level requested to document which level was completed and why the higher one wasn't. A written report that says so is the standard working correctly, not a company stalling.
Who performs these, and who handles the structure
Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3 inspections are the work of a certified chimney sweep. Anglin's does not perform them, does not sweep or clean chimneys, and does not take on caps, liners, flues or flashing. The company's own scope is one line: "Our focus is structural chimney straightening and masonry." So if what you need is a level, a certified sweep is who to call, and you should call one.
What Anglin's does is the other half of the picture, and it's the half a flue camera was never designed to find. A chimney leaning away from the house, a stack tilting in above the roofline, a crack running from the ground to the soffit or a gap opening where the brick meets the wall are settlement and masonry questions. Looking at one of those costs nothing.
When the flag on your report is about the structure
Plenty of reports come back with a note that has nothing to do with the flue: separation at the wall, chimney out of plumb, movement at the base.
Anglin's sorts that with one question before anything else. In the owner's words: "There's 3 things we look for. The first thing is, where's it leaning?" A chimney that tips inward above the gutter was usually built on roof sheathing rather than on masonry carried to the ground. A chimney pulling away from the ground up has lost support under its footing. A chimney doing both at once is usually a prefabricated firebox with brick around it. Why is my chimney leaning walks through all three.
Metro Atlanta gives the second kind plenty of opportunity. The red clay here gets blamed for it constantly, and the USDA rates it low for shrink and swell, so that story doesn't hold up. Water does the work instead. A downspout emptying beside the chimney, a grade running back toward the house, a lot that was cut and filled when the subdivision went in. A chimney concentrates enormous weight on a small patch of ground, so it's often the first part of a house to show what the soil has been doing.
A big lean isn't automatically a teardown either. Anglin's has straightened a chimney leaning 14 inches and put it back over, and most of those repairs finish in 1 day.
A homeowner on a chimney that was tilting
Somebody who started exactly where you are, with a chimney that had moved and a question about what to do:
Anglin's foundation & Masonry performed work on our tilting chimney, and they were outstanding in all areas. I called them about the problem and within 2 hrs. they were out to scope out the work. The next day they provided two approaches to consider. The foreman - Leo was amazing. Anglin's is a truly great company, and I will work with them if we ever have another problem. We were so impressed with their quality of work. Thank you - Chris Gallagher
Christopher Gallagher, 5 stars
Frequently asked questions about chimney inspection levels
What is the difference between a Level 1 and a Level 2 chimney inspection?
Access is the difference. A Level 1 examines readily accessible parts of the chimney and the connected appliance without opening anything up, while a Level 2 adds accessible attics, crawl spaces and basements, checks clearances to combustibles, confirms flue sizing for the appliance, and scans the internal surfaces of the flue liners with a camera.
Do I need a Level 2 inspection when I sell my house?
NFPA 211 requires a Level 2 upon the sale or transfer of a property, so yes, and buyers' agents increasingly ask for one by name. Ordering it early in the process is the practical move, because anything the camera finds is easier to negotiate with weeks left than with days.
Does Anglin's perform Level 1, 2 or 3 chimney inspections?
No. Those belong to a certified chimney sweep, and Anglin's doesn't do them or sell them. What Anglin's does is structural: straightening a chimney that has moved, stabilizing the footing underneath it, and repairing the brick and mortar afterward.
How often is a chimney supposed to be inspected?
Once a year. NFPA 211 calls for chimneys, fireplaces and vents to be inspected annually for soundness, freedom from deposits and correct clearances, and that annual check is a Level 1 unless something in your situation pushes it higher.
Is a structural chimney assessment the same thing as a Level 3 inspection?
No, and the two answer different questions. A Level 3 is about concealed portions of the chimney and flue and can involve opening up the structure, while a structural assessment looks at whether the chimney has moved, where the lean starts, and what the ground under the footing is doing.
My inspection report flagged a crack in the chimney. What now?
Where the crack starts decides who you need. A crack confined to the crown or the flue points to a certified sweep, which is not work Anglin's takes on. A crack running down the outside brick, a gap at the wall, or a stack visibly out of plumb is settlement, and that is worth a structural look before your window closes.
Find out what the chimney is doing
If your report named the flue, call a certified sweep and ask for the level your circumstances call for. Sweeping and flue work are a different trade from this one, and that's the right call to make.
If the chimney has moved, leaned, separated or cracked down the brick, a mason can stand in your yard, read where the crack starts and tell you plainly what it takes to put it back. Anglin's has been repairing Atlanta chimneys since 1930, and the chimney repair crew starts on most of these quickly. As the owner puts it, "Leaning chimneys are a little different, because that's our specialty, so our leaning chimney crew is usually about 2 weeks."
Call 770-422-2924 for a free look.