Your prefab fireplace, repaired to its manual in Orlo Vista

Warped firebox metal

Steel that has bowed, buckled or pulled away from its fasteners inside the firebox has been heated beyond its design. Warping can open seams in the firebox, loosen panels and change clearances around the unit.

Some firebox parts are replaceable and some are not. We check the parts list for your model, show you which damaged parts can be replaced in the field and tell you plainly when warping has gone past what repair can fix.

• Bowed or buckled firebox walls
• Seams pulled open
• Panels loosened by movement
• Parts list checked for what can be replaced

What holds up a factory-built chimney

Metal chimneys hang on supports and straps fastened to the house framing. Section R1005.5 says that where factory-built chimneys are supported by structural members such as joists and rafters, those members shall be designed to support the additional load.

Loose straps, missing fasteners and supports altered during other work let a chimney sag, which strains its joints. We check the supports we can reach and restore them with the maker's parts.

• Straps fastened to rafters or joists
• Supports above any offset
• Fasteners in place
• No sag at the joints

What may touch the face of the fireplace

One maker's instructions allow combustible materials such as wallboard and plywood to meet the sides and top of the fireplace face, provided they stay off the face itself. Brick, glass, tile or other noncombustible materials may overlap the face if they leave louvers and other openings clear.

The same manual calls for noncombustible mortar or adhesive when a noncombustible facing overlaps the face. Refacing jobs that ignored those rules can cause trouble, and we check them whenever a prefab repair brings us to the surround.

• Wallboard to the sides and top, never over the face
• Noncombustible facing may overlap
• Louvers and openings left clear
• Noncombustible mortar or adhesive only

The hearth extension in front of a prefab unit

Section R1004.2 says the hearth extension of a factory-built fireplace follows the listing of the fireplace, stays readily distinguishable from the surrounding floor and, when it is a listed product, complies with UL 1618.

In one maker's manual, that extension reaches 20 inches in front and 12 inches beyond each side, over a layer with a stated insulating value. We measure yours against your own model's figures when the hearth is part of the repair.