How Flint Chimney Co Long Beach Was Born in Long Beach
Flint Chimney Sweep had been doing things the right way since 2002, but Long Beach didn’t have a branch that carried the name until Hank Delano brought it here. The story starts the way most good ones do: with a homeowner who had been burned before, and not by a fire.
Hank had been running chimney work in Southern California for years, seeing the same thing over and over. A homeowner calls someone out for a sweep, the tech shows up, pokes around for twenty minutes, and suddenly there’s a quote for a five-thousand-dollar rebuild with no evidence, no photos, and no explanation that made sense to anyone except the guy holding the invoice. The industry had too much of that. Too many people being told their chimney was dangerous when it wasn’t, and too many others being told it was fine when it needed real attention. Neither one is acceptable.
When the opportunity came to open Flint Chimney Co in Long Beach, Hank didn’t hesitate. He knew this city. He knew the mix of housing stock, the salt air off the water, the older fireplaces in the historic neighborhoods and the newer builds going up around them. More importantly, he knew the people here deserved the same thing every homeowner deserves: a straight answer, backed by evidence, at a price that’s on paper before the work starts. That’s what this branch was built to deliver.
Hank Delano’s Personal Connection to the Chimney Cleaning Trade
Hank Delano didn’t grow up dreaming about chimneys. Nobody does. He found the trade the way most people find work that sticks: by doing it, being decent at it, and realizing somewhere along the way that it mattered more than he expected.
His first real season in the field was an education in how much you can learn with your hands. He remembers the weight of the brushes, the way soot gets into everything no matter how careful you are, and the specific smell of a chimney that hasn’t been cleaned in years. Not just smoke, but something settled and old, like the house had been holding its breath. There’s a rhythm to the work. You set your drop cloths, you check the damper, you run the rods, you inspect every inch with a camera, and then you stand with the homeowner and show them what you found. That last part became the part Hank cared about most.
Ten-plus years in, the trade isn’t just a job anymore. It’s the thing he’s good at, and the thing he feels responsible for. A fireplace is one of the few places in a home where fire lives on purpose. That’s a serious thing, and treating it casually is how people get hurt. What gets Hank out of bed is knowing that the work he does today might prevent something bad from happening in a house next winter. That sounds heavy, and it is, but it’s also simple. If he weren’t doing this, he’d probably be teaching something, or fixing boats, or doing any kind of work where the result is tangible. He likes things he can see, and he likes results he can prove.
Meet Hank Delano – The Person Behind Every Job
Hank Delano is the Owner & Founder of Flint Chimney Co Long Beach. He’s been working in chimney cleaning and inspection for over a decade, learning the trade from the ground up: sweeping, inspections, liner assessment, cap replacement, and the diagnostic work that separates a real recommendation from a guess. He runs the Long Beach branch with the discipline the Flint name depends on, and he’s the one who set the tone for how this team works.
What makes Hank different from a corporate franchise technician is simple: he actually does the work, and he’s accountable for it. There’s no script, no upsell quota, and no incentive to recommend a repair that isn’t warranted. He’s a hands-on owner, not a figurehead. Outside of work, Hank is the kind of person who keeps his own tools organized and his own fireplace clean, because he can’t imagine not doing that after all these years. His commitment to every customer is this: if he tells you something about your chimney, he’ll show you the proof. Every time.
Our Promise to Long Beach Homeowners
We don’t ask anyone in Long Beach to take our word on faith. Every job starts with a written price before any work begins, so there’s no number that moves once we’re at your door. If we find something during the work, we show you what we found, with camera photos when it matters, and we explain what it means in plain language. If it can wait, we say so. If it can’t, we tell you why.
Every job is done by the book, the first time. That’s the Garrison Code, and it’s not a suggestion. We show up inside the window we gave you, we do the work correctly, we leave the site clean and squared away, and we stand behind the work in writing for a full year. If something fails in that time, we come back and make it right at no charge. That promise has held steady since Flint Chimney Sweep started in 2002, and it holds here in Long Beach with every job we take.
Our Credentials
- State-licensed. Every pro working under our name is required to hold the license their state requires for this work. We won’t send anyone into your home who isn’t properly licensed.
- Insured & bonded. Coverage is in place, and it’s required of everyone on the team. You shouldn’t have to wonder about this when someone’s working around your home.
- A decade plus in the trade. Hank Delano has spent more than ten years in chimney work, and the experience shows in how quickly he can separate a real issue from a non-issue.
- Backed by Flint Chimney Sweep. This branch carries the Flint name and the Garrison Standard that has defined the brand since 2002.
Why these credentials matter: someone working in your home needs to be licensed because chimney work touches fire safety. They need to be insured because accidents happen and you shouldn’t carry that risk. And experience matters because an honest, capable tech will save you money by not recommending work you don’t need, and keep you safe by catching the work you do.
Rooted in Long Beach
Long Beach is a working city with a deep mix of old and new. We see it in the homes we visit: Craftsman-era fireplaces in Bluff Heights and Belmont Heights, mid-century builds in Los Altos, and newer construction across East Long Beach. The salt air from the coast plays a role in how chimneys age here, and we account for that in every inspection. We’re proud to be the branch that brings the Flint standard to Long Beach, Lakewood, Wilmington, and the surrounding communities.
Written by Hank Delano, Owner at Flint Chimney Co Long Beach, serving Long Beach since 2002.