Chimney flashingMetal at chimneys, skylights and vents in Colonia
Chimney and Flashing in Colonia, NJ
Chimney and flashing leaks in Colonia: stains beside a chimney, drips at a skylight or vent pipe, metal lifting at a wall.
Call (732) 568-2812, mention the spot and the weather when the stain shows, and the contractor arranges the look.
Leave it and get help if
- Meltwater or rain is reaching a fixture or an outlet beside the chimney wall: back out of the room without touching a switch, and dial 911 from a dry floor.
- You smell gas or smoke near the chimney or a flue: walk everyone outdoors, then dial 911 from the yard.
- A chimney leans or pieces of masonry are falling: keep people clear of the base and of the yard beneath it, and call 911.
- A wire is down on the roof or the yard: treat it as live, keep well away, then call 911 and the electric company.
What to ask about the metal around an opening
Is the flashing being replaced or only re-sealed?
FEMA tells installers to give roof-to-wall flashing close attention, and a quote can say which pieces come off.
What goes under the metal?
The Department of Energy's brief calls peel-and-stick underlayment widely used in valleys and says it reduces water intrusion if shingles are lost.
Is the sealant a stopgap or part of the plan?
Ask the roofer to say where a bead of sealant is part of the job and where the metal does the work.
Who handles the masonry?
A leaning or crumbling chimney is a mason's work, and the roofer can say where the roofing job ends.
What changes the size of a flashing job
The number of openings comes first: a chimney, skylights, vent pipes and wall joints each need their own metal. Height and pitch change the setup, and shingles around an opening may have to come off and go back.
Damage underneath matters most. The Department of Energy's brief takes roofing down to the sheathing where it is damaged and pulls out soaked insulation, so a stain that has been there a while can mean more than a bead of sealant. Masonry repairs are a separate trade. No figures here.
What it looks like
- Brown marks on a wall or ceiling right beside the chimney stack
- Drips that show only in a driving rain, or only in a thaw
- A dark line or damp drywall along one edge of a skylight
- A vent pipe collar with a visible gap or a crack
- Metal at a roof-to-wall joint that has lifted or pulled away
A caulk gun at the skylight edge
A roofer kneels on a gray metal roof and runs a bead of sealant around the flashing at a skylight. The metal around the frame is what sheds water; the bead closes the joint between the metal and the frame.
Sealant is the visible part of a job like this. The metal lapped beneath the roof surface does the heavier work. For a quote, the useful question is which pieces of metal are being replaced and which are only sealed.
What a roofer can look at
Call (732) 568-2812 and describe the stain's spot and the weather in which it shows; the contractor arranges the visit.
Looking at the flashing at the chimney, along a wall, around a skylight and at each vent pipe.
Checking the sealant along those joints for cracks and gaps.
Noting any loose or crumbling masonry around the chimney so you know whether a mason is needed.
Reading the attic side around the chimney or pipe for stains and damp insulation.
Explaining the options in plain terms: re-sealing, replacing a piece of flashing, or a larger repair around the opening.
Asked at the door
How urgent is a leak beside the chimney?
A gas or smoke smell, falling masonry or water at a light fixture: get out or clear and call 911 first. A stain that returns with each rain means a call this week: dial (732) 568-2812. An old stain that stays dry can wait for a dry spell, with a dated photo to compare.
What do the published roofing guides say about flashing?
FEMA's shingle fact sheet tells installers to give roof-to-wall flashing close attention. The Department of Energy's brief pairs sheet metal with high-temperature caulk where a furnace flue passes through, and calls peel-and-stick underlayment widely used in valleys. UMass lists chimneys among the places warm attic air has to be sealed.
Does the same line cover chimneys in Iselin and Edison?
Yes. The Iselin page and the Edison page share it with Colonia. Tell the roofer which opening leaks, a chimney, a skylight or a pipe, and in what weather. Call (732) 568-2812.
Roof-to-wall joint, flue seal, valley and cricket
- Roof-to-wall flashing
- Metal where a roof slope meets a vertical wall; FEMA tells installers to give it close attention.
- Flue seal
- Where a furnace flue passes through the ceiling, the Department of Energy's brief calls for sheet metal and high-temperature caulk.
- Valley
- The V where two slopes meet; the brief says peel-and-stick underlayment is widely used there.
- Cricket
- A small sloped piece behind a chimney that sends water around it; the Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association names crickets and saddles as the cure for local ponding.
Looks you can take
- Note exactly where the stain sits relative to the chimney, skylight or vent, and what the weather was when it showed.
- With binoculars from the lawn, study the metal along the joint between roof and chimney or wall for gaps, lifted edges and sealant that has cracked or pulled away.
- At the attic hatch with a flashlight, check the roof boards around the chimney or pipe for dark streaks.
- Photograph each spot with the date and keep a short list of the rainy or thawing days when it dripped.
Paperwork near the chimney
In the 2018 state notice, ordinary maintenance includes roof covering on one- and two-family dwellings that share no wall with another building; chimneys go unmentioned. Masonry work is a question for the code office. Offices and numbers are under Papers to ask for.
Notes from the sources
- FEMA, Technical Fact Sheet No. 7.3, Asphalt Shingle Roofing for High-Wind Regions
- U.S. Department of Energy, Repairing Roofs and Ceilings technical brief
- UMass Amherst Building and Construction Technology, Preventing ice dams (P. Fisette)
- NJ Department of Community Affairs, Code bulletin 07-3 on ice barrier underlayment
- Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association, Ponding water basics (2017)
- NIOSH, Ladder safety (CDC archive, reviewed 1 March 2024)
- NJ Department of Community Affairs, Ordinary maintenance and minor work alert (March 2018)
- PSE&G, Downed power lines (electric safety)
Checked 1 Nov 2026
Calling in
Jot down the address, how old you think the roof is and what you can see from the lawn. Then call (732) 568-2812. In a rental, the landlord or the property manager is who you phone first. Calls cover Colonia, Iselin and Edison.
