SeismicSeismic Repair & Rebuilds
Cracked or loose stacks rebuilt with reinforcement, or replaced with a lighter framed chase.
- Post-quake checks
- Rebar & anchors
- Permitted work
Two things wear down chimneys along the Orange County coast: earthquakes and salt air. Brick chimneys built before modern seismic codes usually have no steel inside, so a moderate shake can crack them at the roofline. Ocean air rusts ordinary caps and flashing in a few years. Newport Coastal Chimney & Masonry rebuilds unsafe chimneys with reinforcement, fits marine-grade caps and spark arrestors, and converts wood fireplaces to gas. Our office is on Quail Street near the airport, and the dispatch line is open 24/7.
Coastal OC conversations
Older brick chimneys tend to fail at the roofline, where the stack sticks up with nothing holding it. After a quake, or before you sell, here is how we judge one and make it safe.
Roof, attic and firebox checked for horizontal cracks, gaps at the house wall and a leaning top.
A camera checks whether the clay tiles inside shifted or broke, which stays hidden from outside.
Rebuild with vertical rebar and anchors to the framing, or take it down and frame a lighter metal-flue chase.
Rebuilds go through the city's permit process, and you keep the paperwork for insurance or a sale.
Each pair shows the same chimney before and after our work. Drag across the photo, or focus the slider and use the arrow keys.

Decades of movement left this chimney loose above the roof. It came down to the roofline and went back up with rebar, a poured crown and a cap.

Years of damp marine air had softened the old brick. The new chimney has sound brick, a stainless cap made for coastal air and new step flashing.
Bayfront cottages, Spanish-style tile roofs and planned communities from Eastbluff to Newport Coast.
SeismicCracked or loose stacks rebuilt with reinforcement, or replaced with a lighter framed chase.
Tile roofsLeaks fixed where the chimney meets clay or concrete tile, with tiles lifted and reset carefully.
LinersStainless liners sized for gas inserts and logs, plus relining of cracked clay flues.
Caps316 stainless or copper caps that hold up near the ocean, with spark-arrestor mesh.
CameraRecorded flue scans for home sales, insurance claims and after earthquakes.
FireboxesSweeping, firebrick and mortar repair, damper fixes and smoke-chamber work.
The Quail Street office sits between the 405, 73 and 55 freeways, close to both the beach towns and inland neighborhoods. Pick a spot to see an estimated drive.
Estimates start at 2000 Quail St. Summer beach traffic on PCH and the Balboa Peninsula can double them, so dispatch gives you a real window.
Cheap galvanized or 304-grade caps can show rust within a few seasons near the water and stain stucco and tile below.
Hillside areas like Newport Coast and Laguna sit in high fire hazard zones. A mesh arrestor keeps embers in the flue.
Many 1970s–90s homes have a metal flue in a framed chase with a sheet-metal top that rusts and leaks. We replace them in stainless.
A breathable water repellent keeps salty fog from soaking into the brick and mortar.
The South Coast air district restricts wood burning on no-burn days in winter and bars new wood-burning fireplaces in new construction. Many coastal owners switch to gas logs or an insert so the fireplace works any night.
Vented logs in your existing firebox, with a damper clamp and a working flue.
Direct-vent inserts with a coaxial liner give real heat and keep drafts out.
Check the air district's burn forecast before lighting wood from November through February.
We prepare the firebox and flue and work with your licensed gas plumber on the hookup.
For anything else, dispatch answers (949) 276-3029 around the clock.
A dispatcher, every night of the year. A chimney cracked by an earthquake, brick hanging over a walkway or water dripping through the ceiling gets a crew scheduled. If there is fire, gas odor or a carbon monoxide alarm, get out of the house and contact 911 before anything else.
Not until it has been checked. Cracks in the flue can let heat or gases into the walls even when the outside looks fine.
No. Many owners replace the upper part with a framed chase and a metal flue, which is lighter and safer in a quake. We'll price both.
Ocean air. Lower-grade stainless and galvanized steel corrode near the coast. We install 316 stainless or copper.
Existing fireplaces can generally burn on days the air district allows, but many owners convert to gas to avoid no-burn days.
Yes. Chimney rebuilds generally need a city permit, and we schedule the inspections.
Newport Beach, Corona del Mar, Newport Coast, Balboa Peninsula, Newport Heights, Costa Mesa, Irvine, Santa Ana, Tustin, Huntington Beach, Fountain Valley and Laguna Beach.
















Where our trucks go most often.
Newport Coastal Chimney & Masonry answers its dispatch line at every hour, every day.
(949) 276-3029 Call Newport Coastal| Sunday | 24 hrs · dispatch |
| Monday | 24 hrs · dispatch |
| Tuesday | 24 hrs · dispatch |
| Wednesday | 24 hrs · dispatch |
| Thursday | 24 hrs · dispatch |
| Friday | 24 hrs · dispatch |
| Saturday | 24 hrs · dispatch |