Flue relining
Sweep & inspection
Caps & crowns
Masonry repair
Gas fireplace serviceLevel 1 sweep and inspection to the NFPA 211 annual standard - flue, crown, cap, and flashing checked and photographed
Chimney sweep logs do not sweep chimneys. They loosen some creosote - which then falls where a brush and vacuum still have to collect it.
Olympia Chimney Flue Liner Replacement: The San Antonio Owner’s Guide
An Olympia Chimney flue liner replacement in San Antonio typically runs $1,400 to $3,800 installed, and most swaps are completed in a single visit. We keep common Olympia Chimney liner specifications on the truck and can match most existing installations without a second trip. Homeowners usually discover the problem one of three ways: a chimney inspection flags corrosion or cracking, visible flakes of metal start falling into the firebox, or the liner fails during a level two inspection required before a home sale.
If you’re reading this because a sweep or home inspector just used the phrase “your liner is shot,” take a breath. A failed Olympia Chimney liner is repairable, and we replace these every month across San Antonio, from Terrell Hills to Stone Oak. Ruben Castellano’s crew has been matching and replacing Olympia Chimney relining systems for well over a decade. What matters is getting the right liner for your specific flue, sized correctly, and installed so it lasts.
Key Takeaways
- Installed replacement cost for an Olympia Chimney-compatible liner in San Antonio: $1,400 to $3,800 depending on flue height and existing crown condition.
- Most replacements are done in four to six hours, single visit.
- The part that fails fastest is the liner wall at the first bend above the appliance, not the connector pipe.
- DIY is not realistic for this part. The liner is not a simple slip-in tube; it needs exact measurement, proper insulation wrap, top-plate sealing, and crown work.
- We are an independent San Antonio chimney service, not affiliated with Olympia Chimney, and we install their products alongside DuraFlex, HeatShield, and Gelco systems to match your existing setup.
Which Olympia Chimney Models This Applies To
Olympia Chimney supplies flexible stainless-steel relining systems for masonry chimneys and some factory-built fireplace applications. The liner we source for your replacement depends on a few details you can likely find without getting on the roof. Look inside the firebox or at the appliance connection point for a metal rating plate, or check the vent pipe visible in the attic for stamped lettering. Olympia Chimney systems commonly run in 4″, 5″, 5.5″, 6″, and 7″ diameters, and 316L stainless is the standard alloy for gas and oil appliances, while 304 or 316Ti alloys are specified for wood-burning flue gas exposure.
The one compatibility gotcha we see often in San Antonio homes: an Olympia Chimney liner on a gas furnace or water heater sometimes looks like a wood-burning liner from the top, but the interior has been degraded by acidic condensate, not creosote. Installing the wrong alloy replacement moves the failure point rather than solving it. We match the replacement to the fuel type, not just the diameter. For most Olympia Chimney homeowners, a genuine Olympia or a top-tier equivalent in the correct alloy and size will serve equally well. The fancier decision is whether to move up to a smooth-wall or high-temp alloy system, which costs more but gives you five to seven extra years before the next replacement.
Styles & brands we work with
Signs Your Olympia Chimney Flue Liner Replacement Is Failing
- You’re finding metal flakes or rust-colored dust in the firebox or around the damper. This means the liner wall is spalling, which is the physical shedding of metal caused by years of heating-cooling cycles and acidic flue gas condensation. The liner is thinning and will continue to degrade.
- A chimney inspection has flagged “flaking corrosion” or “perforation” on the liner interior. This is the most common path we see. A camera inspection shows pits or holes in the liner wall, often concentrated around the first bend above the appliance, where hot exhaust hits the sidewall hardest.
- The carbon monoxide detector near your fireplace or utility room has triggered more than once without an obvious source. A perforated liner on a gas appliance can send exhaust back into the living space instead of up and out. This is the most serious symptom on the list and should get a same-week inspection.
- Your gas pilot light keeps snuffing out, or the burner flame flickers oddly when the furnace kicks on. A partially collapsed liner restricts draft and can cause combustion-chamber spillage. The appliance is now fighting for air against its own exhaust.
- You see staining or efflorescence on interior walls near the chimney chase. Moisture from condensation inside a failed liner seeps through the masonry and leaves telltale white chalky streaks. In San Antonio summers, the cooling-dampening cycle amplifies this.
See the difference
Before
After
Before
After
Before
AfterReplacement Cost & What’s Included
In San Antonio, a full Olympia Chimney-compatible liner replacement on a single-story fireplace runs $1,400 to $2,400 installed, including the liner, insulation wrap, top plate, rain cap, and connection hardware. A two-story or steep-pitch home, or a flue with an offset bend, runs $2,200 to $3,800. Gas appliance liners, often smaller diameter, sit at the lower end; wood-burning fireplace liners with heavier-gauge alloy sit at the upper end.
| Item | Typical Installed Price Range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Olympia Chimney 6″ x 20′ gas liner, single-story | $1,400 – $1,900 | Includes insulation wrap, top plate, cap, connection |
| Olympia Chimney 6″ x 25′ wood-burning liner, single-story | $1,600 – $2,200 | 304L or 316Ti alloy, heavier gauge |
| Two-story home, 35’+ flue, any fuel type | $2,200 – $2,800 | Additional drop height and climbing time |
| Steep pitch or hard-access roof | $2,600 – $3,800 | Safety equipment and setup time |
| Optional crown reseal while liner is out | $350 – $850 | Worth doing if crown has hairline cracks |
Every Alcott Chimney San Antonio quote includes the liner, insulation, hardware, the labor to drop and connect it, and a written price before any work begins. We will not hand you a schematic and charge for surprises. The written guarantee covers parts and labor for one full year through our 365-Day Done Right Promise. If the replacement fails during that period, the second visit is free.
DIY or Call Us?
You can safely inspect the visible parts for signs of a failing liner: look for rust flakes in the firebox, check for musty or acidic smells coming off the chimney after rain, scan the outer masonry for efflorescence. What you cannot do from the ground is assess the liner’s interior. That takes a chimney camera system, a full flue inspection, and experience reading what the camera shows.
The actual Olympia Chimney flue liner replacement is not a handyman job. It involves dropping a multi-story flexible tube down a masonry flue while maintaining exact clearances, wrapping the liner in a ceramic insulation blanket, sealing the top plate to the crown, and verifying draft with a smoke test. Get the diameter, alloy, or insulation wrong, and you have installed a carbon monoxide risk that looks like a chimney. The materials alone are professional trade stock, and a botched DIY attempt drops the liner down the flue or kinks it against an offset bend and the whole thing has to be pulled out and started over. Call us at (903) 515-5079 and we will get the right liner matched to your Olympia Chimney system the first time.
FAQs
A properly installed Olympia Chimney stainless liner on a wood-burning fireplace lasts 15 to 25 years in San Antonio, while liners on gas appliances often run 10 to 20 years depending on whether the previous owner ran the appliance hard during winter cold snaps and how much condensate pooled in the flue. San Antonio’s humid summers and mild winters mean gas liners often corrode from condensation rather than heat stress. Call (903) 515-5079 and we can camera-inspect yours to give you a realistic remaining lifespan.
If the damage is limited to a short segment, the liner can sometimes be cut and booted with a coupler to bridge the bad section, but only if the remaining liner walls have enough structural thickness to clamp onto. More often than not, once one area has perforated, the surrounding liner is thin enough that the coupler just shifts the problem a foot away. We will never recommend a repair we would not do on our own chimney.
Most single-story San Antonio liner replacements are completed in four to six hours from setup to final draft test. Two-story homes, steep pitches, or flues with offset bends add time but are still finished inside a single day. We do not leave the job until the liner is connected, sealed, and drawing properly.
We keep common Olympia Chimney-compatible liner dimensions and alloys in our San Antonio stock, and we can typically match any existing system in one visit. Special-order sizes or unusual diameters may take a week, and we will tell you that upfront before you commit to anything. Call (903) 515-5079 and tell us what you have; we can usually quote it over the phone.
Written by Ruben Castellano, Owner, Alcott Chimney San Antonio at Alcott Chimney San Antonio, serving San Antonio and nearby areas.
Need an Olympia Chimney flue liner replacement in San Antonio? Call Alcott Chimney San Antonio at (903) 515-5079 for a free estimate. Ruben Castellano and his crew will match your liner, give you a written price before any work begins, and back the job with our 365-Day Done Right Promise. We’re an independent San Antonio chimney company installing professional trade brands including Olympia Chimney, DuraFlex, HeatShield, and Gelco.