Level 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.
Before
After
Before
After
Before
AfterMeet the Waldorf Team Behind Top Hat Chimney
Top Hat Chimney has been working chimneys across Waldorf and Southern Maryland since 1999, and the people who show up at your door still live here. Not in a regional office somewhere. Not rotating through on a franchise schedule. These are the folks you’ll pass at the hardware store or see at a Friday night football game. They know the houses in St. Charles, in White Plains, in La Plata, and they know what our local humidity does to a masonry crown. When you call (240) 358-4452, you’re calling a local number that rings in Waldorf.
Our People
Wendell Pike, Owner & Lead Technician
Wendell started Top Hat Chimney in 1999 with a truck, a brush set, and the firm belief that a chimney is a system, not a hole in the roof. Nearly three decades on, he still runs the camera on every inspection and writes the verdict on every job. He’s been through CSIA training, works directly with DuraFlex and HeatShield liner systems, and has pulled enough dead birds out of flues to have strong opinions about chimney caps. You might get him on the phone at 2 a.m. because he answers his own line. That’s the job.
Marcus T., Senior Installer
Marcus joined Top Hat in 2012 and handles most of our stainless liner installs and full rebuilds. He’s Gelco and Olympia Chimney product certified, which matters when you’re re-sleeving a 40-year-old flue in a Waldorf split level. He’s also the one who figures out the best way to get a 35-foot ladder onto a tricky side yard without touching your gutters. Marcus is married with two kids, coaches youth soccer at White Plains Regional Park, and would rather install a liner in February than sit through a homeowners association meeting in July.
Debra L., Service Coordinator
Debra has been with Top Hat since 2015 and is usually the first voice you hear when you call. She keeps the schedule, tracks which neighborhoods got serviced when, and makes sure you get a real arrival window, not a four-hour shrug. Before chimneys, she did dispatch for a local HVAC company, so she knows exactly how frustrating it is when a contractor goes silent. Debra lives in Waldorf with two rescue dogs, and if you’ve ever been called to confirm a next-day sweep, you’ve heard them in the background.
Jordan R., Apprentice Technician
Jordan is our newest crew member and grew up in Charles County, which means he’s spent his whole life seeing the same pine pollen and summer thunderstorms your chimney deals with. He’s working through his CSIA certification while learning from Wendell and Marcus every day on the truck. His current specialty is drop cloths and cleaning up so thoroughly you’d never know a 12-foot ladder came through your living room. He’ll tell you he joined because he wanted to learn a trade that actually keeps people safe, and so far, he’s right.
One Standard, Every Job
Every chimney we service here in Waldorf gets the same treatment, whether it’s a one-story rancher in St. Charles or a two-story colonial off Acton Lane. The inspect-first rule never bends: camera goes up or down the flue before any recommendation is made, and you see the footage yourself. Upfront pricing is given before tools come off the truck, so the number you hear on the phone is the number on the invoice. And the 90-Day Done Right Promise is stamped on every job. If something isn’t right, one call brings Wendell or Marcus back, no charge, no argument. That promise isn’t corporate boilerplate. It’s Wendell’s name on the work, and he runs into you again on Saturday.
Frequently Asked Questions
You’ll get one of our local team members from Waldorf, Charles County, or nearby. Wendell handles most inspections and camera work. Marcus leads installs. Jordan is on the job learning alongside them. No subcontracted crews, no anonymous technicians. When we schedule a sweep or repair, we’ll tell you who’s coming.
Wendell’s been working chimneys in Southern Maryland since 1999 and keeps current on CSIA training. Marcus holds product certifications for Gelco and Olympia Chimney systems. Every crew member is background-checked and arrives in uniform. If you want to know specifics for your job, just ask when you call (240) 358-4452.
Yes. Many of our repeat customers in Waldorf and La Plata ask for the same tech each year. We’ll do our best to match schedules, especially for annual maintenance where continuity matters. Call (240) 358-4452 and let Debra know who you’d like.
Call us. The 90-Day Done Right Promise means one phone call brings Wendell back at no cost if the work wasn’t done right. That’s in writing on every job we complete. No chasing, no claims department. You call, we come back.
Written by Wendell Pike, Owner at Top Hat Chimney, serving Waldorf, MD since 1999.