Gas fireplace venting from a family-owned team in Bel Air

Fresh air inlets near the vent cap

Exhaust should not be drawn back into the house. One maker's chart asks for a direct-vent cap to sit 3 feet above any mechanical air supply inlet within 10 feet horizontally, and it sets a smaller distance by input for air inlets without a fan.

The same manual adds that gravity air intakes within 3 feet of a cap must sit at least 1 foot below it. Our specialists look for fresh air intakes, ventilation openings and other appliances' air inlets near your cap and measure each one.

Room to breathe in front of the cap

A sealed fireplace pulls its combustion air in at the cap, so the space in front of the cap matters. One direct-vent manual keeps a 24 inch zone in front of the termination hood free of shrubs, garden sheds, fences, decks and utility buildings.

Yards change. A hedge fills in, a shed gets delivered, a gate goes in. Our crew measures that 24 inch zone on every sidewall vent and tells you exactly what has to move.

• Bushes and hedges
• Garden sheds and utility buildings
• Fences and gates
• Decks built after the fireplace

Decorative enclosures over the cap

Some homes hide the gas vent cap inside a decorative chimney-style enclosure on the roof. One B-vent fireplace manual lists a cap obstructed by a decorative enclosure as a cause of poor draft and says to remove or open the enclosure or raise the cap above it.

The same manual lists a crushed, damaged or missing cap as another cause, with replacement as the fix. Our crew checks the cap inside any enclosure, and a listed replacement cap is what goes on.

Gas fireplaces in bedrooms and bathrooms

Florida's fuel gas code keeps appliances out of sleeping rooms and bathrooms in section 303.3, with a short list of exceptions. The first is a direct-vent appliance installed according to its listing and the maker's instructions.

One direct-vent manual confirms that its unit is approved for bedroom installation. A natural-vent fireplace draws room air, and the code allows vented fireplaces in those rooms only under a separate exception tied to the room's volume, so our pros confirm the vent type and the room size before anything else.

What the free venting inspection covers

The inspection costs nothing and carries no obligation. Our pros identify the fireplace and the vent type, check the cap and the space around it, measure the key clearances, look at every reachable joint and confirm the glass seal on direct-vent units.

You get a clear explanation on the spot and a written estimate for anything that needs work. If the vent is sound and the problem lies elsewhere, we tell you that too, so your money goes to the repair that fixes the fireplace.