What Jamesburg Homeowners Say About Top Hat Chimney
Reviews matter because a chimney is one of the few parts of a house you can’t easily inspect yourself. You can walk your roof line and look at shingles. You can peer into the attic. But you cannot see what’s happening twenty feet down a flue without a camera. So people in Jamesburg ask neighbors, check references, and want to know what actually happened when the sweep showed up. That’s how it should be. Wendell Pike and his crew have earned their reputation one firebox at a time since 1999, and the reviews below reflect the way the work actually goes: upfront pricing, a camera inspection with footage you get to see, and a straight answer about whether anything needs doing now or can wait. No scare tactics. No invented emergencies. Just the truth about what’s inside your chimney.
Recent Reviews
“Wendell’s crew swept our chimney in Jamesburg last October before we lit the first fire of the season. They laid down drop cloths, ran the brush, and then showed me the camera footage on the spot. The flue was clean, no liner issues. He told me to call back in a year and not a month sooner. That’s the kind of honesty that keeps me calling Top Hat.”
Daniela F. - Jamesburg, NJ
“I’d been putting off a sweep for two years because I assumed it would be a mess and a hard sell on repairs. The tech arrived in uniform, gave me a real arrival window, and the price he quoted on the phone was exactly what I paid. He found some second-degree creosote buildup near the smoke shelf and swept it out. No upsell on a liner, no drama. We’ll use them every year now.”
Grace C. - Jamesburg, NJ
“Called at 7 p.m. on a Tuesday because I thought I smelled something odd after burning a few logs. A live person answered on the second ring. It was Wendell himself. He walked me through what to check and scheduled a sweep for two days later. The crew found a partial blockage from an old bird’s nest. Camera showed everything clearly. Fixed it same visit. That’s what I want from a chimney company.”
Eric Y. - Jamesburg, NJ
“Top Hat installed a new chimney cap for us after the old one rusted through and let rain into the firebox. The tech showed me photos of the crown damage and explained what the cap would and wouldn’t fix. Straight talk, fair price, and the 90-Day Done Right Promise is printed right on the invoice. The work was done right the first time, but I like knowing one phone call brings him back if it isn’t.”
Wade A. - Jamesburg, NJ
“We bought a house in Jamesburg where the previous owners hadn’t swept the chimney in at least five years. Wendell’s crew came out, did a full cleaning, and ran the camera the whole way up. Showed me a gap in the clay liner that needed attention. Gave me a written estimate, told me I could get a second opinion, and didn’t pressure me to sign. I got the liner work done and the difference in draft is night and day.”
Daniela F. - Jamesburg, NJ
“I have a wood stove insert and I’d been told by another company that I needed a full liner replacement. Wendell’s crew came for a sweep and I asked about it. He ran the camera and showed me the liner had years of life left. He literally talked me out of thousands of dollars of work. Any company that does that gets my business for life.”
Grace C. - Monroe Township, NJ
Why Customers Trust Us
The reviews above share a pattern. People call Top Hat Chimney because a neighbor said Wendell is straight with them. Then they see it for themselves. The price quoted on the phone is the price on the invoice. The camera goes up the flue and you watch the footage with the sweep, not in a follow-up email three days later. If the chimney only needs a brushing, that’s what you’re told. If it needs a liner, you see the crack or gap with your own eyes before a single dollar is discussed. That’s the camera footage and a plain-English verdict, every time, no exceptions.
Wendell founded Top Hat Chimney in 1999 and has spent over 29 years serving Jamesburg and the surrounding communities. He’s not a franchise that rotated in last spring. He lives here, works here, and you’ll run into him at the hardware store on a Saturday. Every job is backed by the 90-Day Done Right Promise, stamped in writing. If the work isn’t right, one call brings Wendell and his crew back at no cost. Standing offers hold for every customer: $40 off any repair over $200, a free second opinion on any competing written estimate, no trip charge inside the county, and 10% off always for seniors and veterans. Call (609) 905-5820 and a live person answers, around the clock. It may well be Wendell himself.
Written by Wendell Pike, Owner at Top Hat Chimney, serving Jamesburg since 1999.