How Level Two Chimney Haverhill Was Born in Haverhill
Corrine Halstead still remembers the phone call. It was late 2015, and a homeowner in the Bradford neighborhood of Haverhill had just paid another company for what they were told was a full Level 2 inspection. The technician had waved a flashlight around, pronounced everything “fine,” and left a handwritten receipt for $89. Two months later, a failed clay liner cracked during a cold snap, and smoke backed up into the nursery. The family called us in a panic.
We ran the camera. The footage showed a three-foot vertical crack that had been visible to anyone who actually looked. That was the moment Corrine decided Haverhill needed what Level Two Chimney Co. already did in other markets: inspections that actually look inside, with archived footage, flat prices in writing, and no performance. The branch opened in Haverhill in early 2016. We have not done a flashlight-only inspection since.
Corrine Halstead’s Personal Connection to the Chimney Cleaning Trade
Corrine did not grow up sweeping chimneys. The trade found her sideways, through a rental property she owned in Methuen Town back in 2010. The flue was drawing poorly. Three companies came out. One tried to sell her a $4,200 liner replacement she did not need. Another quoted $600 for “a deep chemical treatment” and would not explain what that meant. The third stood on her roof for ten minutes, then knocked and said the chimney was “probably okay.” She watched him drive away and thought: there has to be a better way to know what is actually happening inside a flue.
She found a tradesman who trained her on older masonry in the Merrimack Valley, the kind of brickwork you see in the Acre and across downtown Lawrence. He taught her to read spalling, to spot pyrolysis in a smoke chamber, to recognize the particular sulfur smell that means a gas flue is condensing. She spent her first winter crawling through attics in Wilmington and Andover, carrying a chimney camera that weighed six pounds and recorded to an SD card. Her hands cracked. Her knees bruised. She loved it.
What gets her out of bed is the same thing that hooked her then: the moment a homeowner sees their own flue on screen for the first time. The surprise. Sometimes the relief, sometimes the alarm, but always the clarity. She has turned down offers to run larger operations because this work, done locally, with evidence, is what she would choose to do even if she did not need to work. If she were not doing this, she would probably be restoring old houses somewhere in Essex County, which is essentially the same impulse: figure out what is actually wrong, fix it properly, leave proof that you did.
Meet Corrine Halstead - The Person Behind Every Job
Corrine Halstead is Owner and Founder of Level Two Chimney Haverhill. She holds the Massachusetts CSL license required for chimney and fireplace work in the Commonwealth, carries full liability and workers compensation coverage, and has trained directly under veteran sweeps certified through the Chimney Safety Institute of America. She does not send technicians she has not personally worked beside.
What separates Corrine from a corporate franchise technician is simple: she is the one who answers when something goes wrong. She lives in the service area. She knows which Andover neighborhoods have pre-1950 terra cotta flue liners that fail predictably, and which Haverhill streets see the worst ice dam backup into chase covers. She keeps bees in her backyard, which she says taught her more about patient observation than any classroom could. Every job she touches carries her personal commitment: if we document it, we stand behind it. If we recommend it, we will show you exactly why.
Before
AfterOur Promise to Haverhill Homeowners
Our values are not posters on a wall. They are policies we have had to enforce.
Honest pricing. Clause 1 of the Haven Standard requires a flat price, written scope, and written warranty before anyone starts. We have walked away from jobs where a homeowner wanted us to begin and bill later. The price on your estimate is the price on your invoice.
Quality parts. When a liner replacement is necessary, we specify HeatShield, Gelco, or Olympia Chimney products by name in your written quote. We do not source unmarked flex pipe or generic caps. Famco termination caps are what we install when a chase cover needs replacement, because we have the documentation on how they perform in coastal Essex County weather.
Standing behind every job. In 2019, a liner we installed in a Newburyport home showed a manufacturing defect eighteen months later. We did not debate warranty language. We pulled the camera footage from our archive, confirmed the failure was not installation-related, and still covered the replacement because the homeowner had trusted our recommendation. That is the standard we work to.
Our Credentials
- State-licensed - Corrine Halstead holds the Massachusetts Construction Supervisor License required for structural chimney and fireplace work in the Commonwealth. Every pro working under our name is required to hold the license and insurance their state requires.
- Insured and bonded - Full general liability and workers compensation coverage protects your property and our crew while we are on your roof or in your home.
- Years of local experience - Level Two Chimney Co. has inspected and cleaned over 38,000 chimneys since 2009, with the Haverhill branch operating since 2016. Corrine has worked specifically in the Merrimack Valley and Essex County markets for over a decade.
- Strong local reputation - We are reviewed on the same platforms you check before calling anyone. We encourage you to read the three-star reviews specifically; they tell you how we respond when something does not go perfectly.
These credentials matter because chimney work happens inside your home’s structure, on your roof, and involves combustion safety. A homeowner in Lowell or Danvers hiring a sweep is inviting someone into their house who will make claims about fire and carbon monoxide risk. License verification and insurance are the minimum threshold for that trust. Our archived documentation, Clause 4 of the Haven Standard, is what keeps it.
Rooted in Haverhill
Corrine lives here. Her trucks are parked here. She has swept chimneys in the Mount Washington neighborhood, replaced chase covers on homes near Winnekenni Castle, and cleared squirrel nests from flues in Riverside. The Merrimack River valley climate, with its freeze-thaw cycles and wet spring weather, shapes the masonry damage we see across Haverhill, Methuen Town, and Lawrence. We do not pretend to be from somewhere more interesting. This is where we work, where we answer the phone, and where we keep our records.
Written by Corrine Halstead, Owner at Level Two Chimney Haverhill, serving Haverhill since 2016.