How It Works

Repairing a zero-clearance fireplace in Indian Mound Village

Glass doors must be listed for the unit

Doors on a factory-built fireplace change how much air reaches the fire. Section R1004.5 of the Florida Building Code permits a gasketed door on a factory-built fireplace only if the system is listed and labeled to UL 127 for such a door. The IHP guide adds that doors other than the maker's own void its warranty and may create a hazard.

Before our pros repair or replace doors in Indian Mound Village, they confirm the door kit your model calls for. A universal door that almost fits is not offered, even when it would be quicker. One Superior line sells its bi-fold doors by opening size and finish, each with its own part number, and that number goes on your estimate.

Offsets and elbows in a prefab chimney

A factory-built chimney does not always run straight. Under section R1005.7, an offset may lean at most 30 degrees off plumb, and the assembly may include four elbows at the most. One Superior manual adds that the weight above an offset rests on the return elbow, that straps are nailed to rafters or joists and that an angled run may go no more than 6 feet between supports.

Sagging or separated elbows are hard to see from the room. Our pros check the offsets they can reach in your Indian Mound Village attic or chase and replace strained parts with the elbows, straps and supports listed for the system.

Attic insulation shields around the chimney

Section R1005.8 of the Florida Building Code deals with the spot where a factory-built chimney meets insulation. It requires a shield of steel no thinner than 26 gauge that holds the insulation away from the pipe by the chimney maker's clearance, and in an attic the shield has to rise 2 inches or more above the insulation and be fastened so it stays put. One Superior manual also warns never to fill the chimney enclosure with blown insulation.

New insulation, pest treatment or storage in the attic can knock a shield loose or bury it. When our pros can reach the attic above your Indian Mound Village prefab fireplace, they check the shield and the insulation around it and put any correction on your estimate.

Yearly maintenance for a prefab fireplace

NFPA heating safety advice is to have a qualified professional clean and inspect chimneys every year, and the DuraTech instructions call an annual inspection required. For a factory-built fireplace, that yearly visit covers the panels against their crack limit, the grate, damper, doors and screen, the grilles and the metal chimney as far as it can be reached.

These maintenance visits are available in Indian Mound Village from our family-owned team. Worn parts found early are small repairs, and the visit starts with the same free inspection as any other job. A written record of each visit shows how the panels and grate are aging from one year to the next.