Chimney sweep in Savage, MN Savage fireplace and chimney care for 1980s and 1990s homes

Dan Patch, a river landing and a late boom

A trading post opened in 1852 where the Credit River meets the Minnesota, at a spot called Hamilton Landing. The village of Hamilton was incorporated in 1892. In 1904 it was renamed Savage for M.W. Savage, who trained the champion pacer Dan Patch on his farm here. The historic downtown along Highway 13 still has about 17 blocks of late-1800s buildings.

Savage stayed largely undeveloped after World War II, partly because it had no direct interstate link. Growth came later, helped by Highway 169 and the Bloomington Ferry Bridge, which opened in 1996. Most housing today is single-family.

Factory-built fireplaces and chase covers

A factory-built fireplace has a metal firebox and a metal flue. On the roof, the flue usually rises inside a framed box called a chase, topped with a metal chase cover. Flat covers tend to rust and pool water. That water can run into the chase and down the outside of the flue, rotting the framing and staining ceilings.

Inside, we look for warped firebox panels, gaps between flue sections and a damper that sticks. These parts are made for one model, so repairs use listed parts only. If a gas insert has been added to a wood-burning unit, it needs a liner and vent made for that insert. See our chimney repair page for the fixes we handle.

Older masonry near downtown

If one of the late-1800s buildings along Highway 13 still has a working brick chimney, treat it differently from a newer flue. Old brick needs a soft, lime-rich mortar when it is repointed, and the flue should be checked for a liner before any fire is lit. A camera run up the flue shows whether the original liner is still there and in one piece.