How Hearthstone Chimney Co. Was Born in Ewing
We opened our doors here in Ewing back in 2014 because we’d seen enough. The chimney trade in Mercer County had become a patchwork of seasonal operators and upsell artists, and homeowners were paying the price. We’d been working in the industry long enough to know what a proper sweep looked like, and we were tired of cleaning up after companies that treated a chimney like an ATM.
The moment that settled it happened in late winter, just before the last cold snap. A homeowner in the Mountain View section called us after another company had quoted her north of four thousand dollars for “critical liner replacement” her chimney supposedly needed immediately. She was shaken. She’d already written the deposit check. We came out, ran a camera, and found a cracked clay flue tile that could be repaired with a proper stainless steel insert for a fraction of what she’d been quoted. The other outfit never even dropped a camera down. She canceled the check and cried with relief. That night, we decided: Ewing needed a sweep who’d look you in the eye and tell you the truth, even when the truth was “this can wait.” Twelve years later, that’s still the only way we work.
Russell Haines’s Personal Connection to the Chimney Cleaning Trade
Russell Haines didn’t stumble into chimney work. He was drawn to it the way some people are drawn to old houses or woodworking, the way you get pulled toward something that demands patience and leaves a visible mark. Before Hearthstone came to Ewing, he’d spent over a decade learning the trade from the ground up, starting as an apprentice hauling brushes and buckets and slowly working into the technical work: masonry, liner installation, the physics of draft and combustion.
What hooked him wasn’t the fire, though he loves a good hearth as much as anyone. It was the problem-solving. A chimney that won’t draw right in a century-old Princeton colonial is a puzzle with a hundred variables: flue size, house pressure, tree cover, the way the wind hits the ridge. Russell would sit on a roof in December, fingers stiff, figuring out why smoke was backing up into someone’s living room, and feel the same satisfaction he’d felt as a kid taking apart engines to see how they ran.
The smell of creosote still takes him back to those early mornings, loading the van in the dark, driving to the first job with coffee going cold. The weight of a proper sweep brush. The sound of a camera cable feeding down a flue, the grainy image on the monitor revealing what no eye could see. He’s told us more than once that if he weren’t doing this, he’d probably be restoring old boats or working with stone somewhere. Something with his hands, something that outlasts him.
What gets him out of bed now is the same thing that got him out of bed then: a homeowner who finally understands what they’ve got, what condition it’s in, and what it actually needs. Not fear. Not confusion. Clarity. That’s the work.
Meet Russell Haines - The Person Behind Every Job
Russell Haines is the Owner and Founder of Hearthstone Chimney Co. here in Ewing. He’s a state-licensed sweep with training in level-2 inspections, masonry repair, and stainless steel liner installation. He’s worked with Olympia Chimney and Copperfield systems over the years and knows the difference between a proper installation and one that’ll fail in five seasons.
What separates Russell from a franchise technician sent from a dispatch hub is simple: he’s the one who answers for the work. He lives in this community. His name is on the truck. On weekends, you’ll find him restoring a 1920s Craftsman bungalow he bought in Lawrence, stripping paint by hand because shortcuts ruin old wood. That same patience shows up in your flue. He’ll tell you plainly: “If I wouldn’t do it in my mother’s house, I won’t do it in yours.” That’s not a slogan. It’s the filter he runs every job through.
His commitment to you is direct. Call us at (856) 388-5580, and you’ll get a straight answer about what your chimney needs, what it doesn’t, and what it’ll cost before we start.
Our Promise to Ewing Homeowners
Our values aren’t framed on a wall. They’re tested every day.
Krafted right. We use trained journeymen, proper materials like Gelco and Famco components where they fit, and we don’t shortcut the hard parts. A liner that isn’t properly sized will kill your draft and waste your money. We measure twice.
Every time. The 400th inspection gets the same camera run, the same photo documentation, the same plain-English report as the first. We’ve seen what complacency costs in this trade.
Your home first. We lay drop cloths, wear boot covers, and vacuum behind ourselves. The tradesman who trained Russell told him: “You’re a guest in that house.” We still believe it.
Standing behind it. The Keystone Standard: 90 days, in writing, no arguing. If it’s not right, we come back. No paperwork battle, no finger-pointing.
Honest pricing means a free written estimate before you commit. No surprises on the bill. Quality parts mean we don’t install knockoff liners that’ll corrode in three years. Standing behind every job means Russell’s name is on it, and his phone number works.
Our Credentials
- State-licensed - Every pro working under our name is required to hold the license their state requires. No exceptions.
- Insured & bonded - Protection for your home and property while we’re on the job.
- Years of local experience - Russell has been in this trade for well over a decade, and our Ewing branch has served Mercer County since 2014.
- Strong local reputation - Built one appointment at a time, one honest report at a time.
Here’s why this matters when you’re letting someone work in your home: a license means they’ve met the state’s minimum competence standard, not just claimed it. Insurance means if a ladder slips or a tool drops, you’re not calling your own agent. Bonding means there’s a financial backstop if something goes wrong. And local experience means Russell knows how Ewing’s freeze-thaw cycles stress masonry, how Princeton’s older flues were built, and what the building inspectors in West Windsor actually look for. That knowledge keeps you from paying for work you don’t need.
Rooted in Ewing
We’ve swept chimneys in the Glen Moore neighborhood, inspected flues off Parkway Avenue, and repaired liners in homes near the College of New Jersey. We’ve worked through Ewing winters cold enough to crack mortar and summers humid enough to grow mildew in a neglected flue. We know the difference between a house built in the 1950s expansion and one of the older stone places near Shabakunk Creek.
Our hours are Monday through Sunday, 7:30 AM to 8:00 PM. A live coordinator answers our line and connects you with our local team. We’re not going anywhere. The hearthstone is the stone the whole home gathered around, and we plan to be keeping Ewing’s hearths safe for decades to come.
Written by Russell Haines, Owner at Hearthstone Chimney Co., serving Ewing since 2014.