Who we're talking to

Chimney work is smaller than people think

Most people assume chimney repairs mean wrapping the entire property. They usually don't.

If you're a homeowner

You've been told the chimney needs work

Whether it's repointing, a new pot, flaunching, or a rebuild after storm damage, the scaffold for a chimney is normally one elevation with a lift that carries on above the roof line to give a working platform around the stack itself.

That's considerably cheaper than a full scaffold. If someone has quoted you for wrapping the whole house to fix one chimney, it's worth asking why - occasionally there's a good reason, usually there isn't.

If you're a builder or roofer

You need a proper platform at stack height

Working off the roof slope with a ladder against a chimney is how people get hurt, and it's slow. You need boards at a sensible working height around the stack, room for materials, and access that doesn't mean carrying bricks up a ladder.

Tell us the stack height, which elevation it sits on, and whether you need a loading point for materials.

Request a quote for chimney repairs scaffold

Tell us about the property and roughly when access is needed. Prefer to talk it through? Call 01223 756 576.

No obligation. We'll usually come back to you the same working day.

The jobs

Chimney jobs we scaffold for

Repointing and repairs

The most common one. Access around all faces of the stack at working height, so mortar joints can be raked out and repointed properly rather than reached awkwardly from the slope.

Chimney rebuilds

Where the stack is taken down and rebuilt, materials go up and rubble comes down. That needs a stronger platform and usually a loading point - worth saying at quote stage.

Pots, cowls and flaunching

Often a half-day job for the builder, but still needs safe access above roof height. One of the smallest scaffolds we put up.

Lead flashing and weathering

Work at the junction between stack and roof. Needs access to the roof slope around the chimney base as well as the stack itself.

Storm damage

Usually urgent, sometimes with debris already down. Tell us when you call if the stack is unstable, and we'll be honest about how quickly we can get there.

Chimney removal

Taking a stack out entirely means significant material coming down, and the roof being made good afterwards - normally scaffolded alongside roofing work.

Cost

What a chimney scaffold actually costs to build

Three things drive it. Stack height above the roof - a chimney on a bungalow ridge and one on a three-storey Victorian terrace are different jobs. Which elevation it sits on - a stack on a gable end reachable from the garden is straightforward; one over a conservatory or a neighbour's boundary isn't. And whether materials need lifting - a repoint needs less than a rebuild.

What it isn't driven by is the size of your house. We're scaffolding the chimney, not the property, so a large house with an easily reached stack can cost less than a small one with an awkward chimney.

We scaffold chimneys across Cambridge, Ely, Royston and the surrounding area - see all areas we cover.

How we work

How chimney access is built

Above the stack, not to it

The lift carries past the chimney top so there's a platform to work from, not a ledge to lean off.

Boarded around the faces

Access to all the faces being worked on, so nobody is stretching round a corner with a trowel.

Down when the stack's done

Small job, quick strike. One call and we book it in rather than leaving it up.

Questions

Chimney scaffolding, explained

Almost never. Chimney work normally needs one elevation with a lift running above the stack, which costs a fraction of a full scaffold. If you've been quoted for wrapping the whole property to repoint one chimney, ask what's driving that - there's occasionally a genuine access reason, but it's worth questioning.

As long as the builder needs. Repointing might be a couple of days; a full rebuild can be a week or more. We agree the likely period up front and extend if the work runs on rather than leaving your builder without access.

Usually, but it changes the design - the scaffold has to bridge or be supported clear of the structure below rather than landing on it. Mention it when you enquire, because it affects both the build and the price.

For a visual inspection from ground level or a drone survey, no. If someone needs to physically get to the stack to assess it, then yes - and it's often worth combining the inspection and the repair under one scaffold rather than paying for access twice.

Get a free quote

Tell us about the job and we'll come back with a clear price - no obligation.