The Tony’s Chimney Service Team attended Copperfield’s Ventis Forever Fireplace Training and Here’s What They’ve Learned
Is Your Fireplace Going to Last Forever?
Around the 80’s and 90’s, homes were built fast for the rapidly growing population. Chester County, Montgomery County, Delaware County, Burks County, and Lancaster County all saw massive growth during this time with neighborhoods popping up everywhere.
Fireplaces in those homes generally are called manufactured or prefabricated fireplaces. These fireplaces can be filled with gas logs, or they could be wood-burning fireplaces. What makes them interesting and specific is that these fireplaces can be installed in a wood frame construction without the need to build a full brick chimney. This saved thousands of dollars in building costs and allowed homes to be more affordable while still allowing the homeowner to have a fireplace.
While very positive in many ways due to the lower cost and ease of installation, prefabricated fireplaces contained parts and materials that failed over time. Most prefabricated fireplaces and chimneys were made of sheet metal or galvanized metal. This metal tends to warp with usage and is heavily affected by the intrusion of moisture into the chimneys and fireboxes resulting in rust.
On top of that, the original manufacturers have largely been bought out by competition or have gone out of business. This means that when parts and pieces of the unit fail over time for whatever reason, they are not readily available for replacement.
Due to the Safety Underwriting Laboratories testing that is required for these products, parts, and materials generally cannot be swapped with aftermarkets parts and materials. Sometimes, the only option when your prefabricated firebox begins to rust or warp is for the unit to be replaced. The replacement requires the removal of the firebox itself plus the chimney piping that it connects to.
What is Ventis Forever Fireplace?
Here at Tony’s Home Services, we understand that when something is in your home, you want it to be permanent. Let’s face it, a fireplace or chimney is not something the average homeowner expects to replace like they would with a furnace, air conditioner, or water heater. When replacement must occur, we want to put the most long-lasting best product that we can so that the homeowner never has to think about it again.
The team at Tony’s Home Services is constantly training and looking for products that are perfect for your home. Recently, the Tony’s staff attended training through the chimney supply manufacturer Copperfield on their product called the Ventis Forever Fireplace.
The Ventis Forever Fireplace is a revolutionary product because the majority of its construction is made of stainless steel. This is beneficial as stainless steel will not rust. Rust is the top reason why these fireboxes fall apart and require replacement.
While Tony’s Home Services has completed prefabricated fireplace replacements before, being trained specifically on the Ventis Forever Fireplace ensures us and our customers that we understand the product and know how it must be installed in your home.
How does this work?
Fireplace installation and fireplace replacement vary on a case-to-case basis. Sometimes during the installation and removal of the old fireplace, the mantels and the surrounds in the fireplace must be removed and replaced. On occasion, the drywall must be cut and modified as well as the framing behind it. Typically, these fireplaces are best removed and installed from the wall behind the unit to avoid disrupting the front façade/veneer of your fireplace. This is done by removing the siding behind the fireplace and adjusting the framing to be able to remove the fireplace and the chimney pipe.
Once all the material is removed, we inspect the firestops that make up the chase or the chimney structure where the chimney pipe rests. Firestops need to be on every floor, or every 8-10 feet. These firestops help prevent the spread of fire in the chase and are required by code (IRC).
When everything is built correctly, the chimney pipe is installed in the chase followed by the firebox installation which is leveled and secured. At this point, the chimney pipe is installed into the unit, the chase walls are insulated and framed out properly, and the siding is reapplied. At the top of the chimney, a chase cover is installed to protect the top of the chase and an appropriate cap is placed for the chimney pipe and the unit. Lastly, the interior of the firebox is set up as per the manufactured design.
Call Tony’s Home Services to See if Ventis Forever Fireplace is for You!
The Tony’s team spends time with the client to explain how to operate the fireplace and the care and maintenance procedures.
Everyone expects to replace their roof, fireplace, water heater, washer, and other appliances during their stay in their home. We don’t tend to think about doing this with our fireplaces.
Our goal here at Tony’s is for you to need one fireplace replacement once in your life and never have to think about it ever again. The Ventis Forever Fireplace is the perfect product to achieve this goal. Of course, once your brand-new unit is installed, it’s still part of your responsibility as a homeowner to you maintain your fireplace to ensure that everything is safe to use and operate. Tony’s Home Services recommends annual chimney cleaning and chimney inspections if you are burning anything in your fireplace.
Call Tony’s Home Services for excellent fireplace maintenance services. Remember, chimney sweeping protects you, your family, and your home.
