Gas Fireplace

Gas fireplace care from pilot to vent cap

Our experts read the rating plate and follow your model's manual before any part is replaced.

What an annual gas fireplace service covers

Gas fireplace manufacturers ask for a qualified service person to inspect the appliance and its venting before use and at least once a year after that. Our annual gas fireplace service follows the service list in your model's manual, which typically covers the items below.

You get a written record of what was cleaned, what was found and anything we recommend, each with its own price.

  • Burner ports cleaned and checked for an even flame
  • Pilot assembly cleaned, including its thermocouple, thermopile or flame sensor
  • Logs, embers or glass media lifted, cleaned and reset to the diagram
  • Glass cleaned on both sides and the door gasket inspected
  • Blower cleaned and its operation checked
  • Vent termination and visible venting checked for blockage and damage
  • Controls, wall switch, remote and batteries tested
  • Light-up time and flame appearance compared with the manual

Cleaning fireplace glass without harming it

The glass on a sealed gas fireplace is often ceramic, and it scratches more easily than it looks. One maker warns against razor blades, steel wool and other metal scrapers, which can scratch the surface, leave marks on its coating and weaken the glass. Abrasive cleaners and ammonia-based sprays are also on that maker's list of things to avoid.

The same manual has both sides of the glass cleaned once the unit has run its first 10 hours, then as needed, always after the glass has cooled. During service we remove the glass the way the manual describes, clean it, check the gasket and seat it again so the seal is even all round.

Cracked glass means the fireplace stays off

The glass front on a direct-vent fireplace is part of the sealed combustion chamber. Manufacturers say plainly that the appliance must not run with the glass removed, cracked or broken, because flue gases can leak into the room. If the glass cracks while the fire is burning, one maker says to keep the door closed until the fire is out.

Replacement glass is ordered as the complete glass and frame assembly the manufacturer supplies for that model, never a cut piece from another source. Glass replacement is its own service, and during a repair visit we tell you straight away if the glass or its frame needs it.

Gas inserts in an existing fireplace

A gas insert is a sealed unit set into an existing fireplace opening, venting through liners run up the old chimney. Its repairs follow the insert's own manual, and some parts sit behind a surround panel that has to come off first.

Tell us if your fireplace is an insert when you book, and share the model if you have it. We check the insert, its liner connections where they can be reached and the surround panels, and we explain any work that needs the insert pulled forward before we start. That keeps the scope and the price clear from the beginning.