Your fireplace repair team in Audubon Park

Hearth protection in front of a factory-built unit

A factory-built fireplace comes with its own rules for the floor in front of it. The Florida Building Code has its hearth extension installed as the fireplace listing directs, and it has to stand out clearly from the floor around it. Listed hearth extensions comply with UL 1618.

Trouble starts when new flooring runs right up to the opening, a hearth pad is removed during a remodel or tile that matches the floor makes the extension hard to see. The manual for the model sets the size and the materials, and those can differ from the rules for masonry fireplaces.

What is there gets measured against the manual and the listing. If the extension is missing, too small or blends into the floor, we write up a fix that follows the manual, whether that is a listed pad, a new border or a change of material. The measurements go on the estimate too.

How close wood trim can sit to the opening

Mantels and wood trim look natural around a fireplace, but the Florida Building Code limits how close combustible trim can sit to a masonry fireplace opening and how far it may project the nearer it gets. A mantel that was lowered, or trim added during a remodel, can end up closer than the code allows.

Signs of trouble include scorch marks, finish that has darkened or blistered near the opening, or trim that feels hot during a fire. Any of those is a reason to measure before the next fire.

We measure from the opening to each piece of wood and compare it with the code for masonry, or with the manual for a factory-built unit. If something sits too close, the estimate lists the options, such as moving the mantel, trimming back a projection or replacing the wood near the opening with a noncombustible piece.

Trash, painted wood and other things to keep out

EPA wood-burning guidance lists materials that release toxic or harmful chemicals when burned and may damage the appliance they are burned in. The list is worth keeping near the fireplace.

These often end up in a fireplace for convenience, after a move, a party or a clean-out of the garage. The damage they leave can show on the firebox, the damper and the door glass.

When our technicians find signs of trash or treated wood in the firebox, they point it out, because repairs hold up better when the fuel is right. Homeowners in Audubon Park also get a short fuel note for their fireplace type on the written record.

• Household trash, cardboard, plastics and foam
• Coated, painted or pressure-treated wood
• Ocean driftwood, plywood, particle board or glued wood
• Wet, rotted, diseased or moldy wood

Wax and sawdust logs belong in open fireplaces

Manufactured firelogs made of wax and sawdust are convenient, but EPA wood-burning guidance says many are made for open-hearth fireplaces only. They should not go into a wood stove or a fireplace insert unless its instructions allow them.

For open fireplaces, EPA advises following the log maker's instructions and burning one log at a time, both for cleaner air and for fire safety. Stacking several at once goes against that advice.

If you have a factory-built fireplace, its manual may give its own guidance on firelogs, and our technicians check it whenever a customer asks. If firelog residue or signs of overheating turn up during a repair, we explain what we saw and add a note for your fireplace to the written record. That note covers the fuel your model is meant to burn.