Service area · Passaic County

Chimney Services in Pompton Lakes, NJ

Many Pompton Lakes houses date from the 1940s through the 1970s, and some no longer use every flue they were built with. An idle flue still faces the weather, and this page covers how to look after one.

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Chimney profile
What the numbers suggest for chimneys in Pompton Lakes
What an unused flue still goes through
Three ways to handle a flue you do not use
Ramapo River flooding at Pompton Lakes
Local questions
Sources

Chimney profile: Pompton Lakes

Census estimates for 4,317 housing units (4,248 occupied).

When homes were built

Before 1940 9%
1940–59 37%
1960–79 33%
1980–99 12%
2000 or later 9%

How occupied homes are heated

Utility gas 82%
Fuel oil 3%
Electricity 13%
Propane 2%
Wood 0%

Type of housing

Single-family, detached 67%
Single-family, attached 8%
2–4 units 4%
5+ units 20%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates, tables B25034, B25040 and B25024, via Census Reporter. Estimates have margins of error; small categories are approximate.

What the numbers suggest for chimneys in Pompton Lakes

Census estimates place about 37% of the borough's 4,317 housing units in the 1940 to 1959 range and 33% in the 1960s and 1970s. Chimneys built then often hold more than one flue, typically one for the fireplace and one for the heating system. Our guide to chimneys with more than one flue explains how they are arranged.

Heating is mainly gas, at about 82% of occupied homes, while about 13% heat with electricity and 3% with fuel oil. A switch to electric heat, or a gas appliance that now vents through a wall, can leave a flue with no job. A fireplace that stays cold for years does the same.

About 20% of units are in buildings with five or more units. Like any Census figure, these describe the borough as a whole, not the chimney on a given house.

What an unused flue still goes through

An idle flue is open to the sky unless something covers it. Rain falls straight in, and without warm exhaust to dry it, moisture can linger in the masonry. Birds and animals look for sheltered openings, and a cold, quiet flue suits them; the guide to animals and nests in the chimney covers what follows. Leaves and debris that fall in stay there, since nothing pushes them out.

None of this shows from the living room, so an unused chimney can go years without anyone looking at it. A water stain near the chimney, a musty smell at the fireplace or scratching sounds can be the first clues.

Three ways to handle a flue you do not use

Cap it and keep it ready

A chimney cap with mesh keeps rain and animals out while leaving the flue usable. That suits a fireplace you might light again or a flue you may need for a future appliance. It still deserves a periodic inspection.

Seal the top of a fireplace flue

For a fireplace you rarely use, a top-sealing damper closes the flue at the top between uses; we install them as part of our damper work. It is meant for fireplace flues. A heating flue that no longer serves an appliance needs a cap or a permanent closure instead.

Close it permanently

If you are certain a flue will never be used, it can be sealed at the top and the bottom. Keep a record and tell everyone in the household, so no one lights a fire or connects an appliance to it later. Our guide to caring for a fireplace you never use goes into more detail.

Ramapo River flooding at Pompton Lakes

The National Weather Service flood history for the Ramapo River gauge at Pompton Lakes gives a flood stage of 11.5 feet. The highest crests it lists include 22.61 feet on August 28, 2011, 18.05 feet on March 14, 2010 and 16.99 feet on April 16, 2007. If water has reached your basement, have any furnace, boiler or water heater that vents into the chimney evaluated by a heating technician, and have the chimney's base and cleanout checked, before the system runs again. NDSU Extension's flood guidance calls for flooded heating equipment to be professionally inspected before reuse.

Local questions

Does a chimney we never use still need a cap?

If the flue is open, yes. Without a cap or a closure, rain and animals have a direct way in, and an unused flue has no warm exhaust to dry it.

We switched to electric heat. Can we just ignore the old heating flue?

You can stop using it, but it should be capped or properly closed. An inspection can also confirm that nothing else is still connected to it.

Can an unused flue be put back into service later?

Often it can, once an inspection and cleaning confirm it is sound and suits the appliance you plan to use. A permanently sealed flue needs the seal removed and a full check first.

Is a top-sealing damper the same thing as a cap?

They do different jobs. A top-sealing damper opens for a fire and closes the flue between uses. A cap stays fixed over the flue with a hood and screen, keeping out rain and animals while the flue stays open.

Sources

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