Installing And Maintaining Your Prefab Wood-Burning Fireplace

Pre-fabricated fireplaces are metal fireplaces that are designed and built by a manufacturer. These types of fireplaces must pass extensive safety and efficiency testing in conjunction with specific pre-fabricated chimney systems. Although they haven’t been around for all that long, pre-fabricated fireplaces are gaining popularity with homeowners for several reasons.

Reasons for popularity include:

Light-Weight/Less Expensive Materials – Because pre-fabricated fireplaces are designed out of faux stone/brick, they don’t come with the same hefty material costs of a masonry fireplace. Although they are designed to look like the real thing (many manufacturers use real stone and brick casting to create their prefab fireplaces), imitation materials are significantly cheaper. These materials are also significantly lighter than real brick and stone. What this means for the homeowner is that they don’t have to worry as much about the structural ability of the home to withstand the weight of masonry. As imitation materials and casts become more and more realistic looking, homeowners don’t have to sacrifice aesthetics when purchasing a pre-fabricated fireplace. Plus, with all of the color and style options out there, there’s a prefab fireplace for just about everyone.
Easy To Replace – In addition to being light weight and comparatively inexpensive, pre-fabricated fireplaces offer ease of replacement. That means that should you choose to change your style or fuel type down the road, you don’t have to worry about making any real structural changes to your home. For the non-committal homeowner, this is definitely a plus.
More Efficient – Traditional masonry fireplaces can also be drafty and inefficient heating sources. With a pre-fabricated wood-burning fireplace, you can be confident that you aren’t continuously losing conditioned air. These fireplaces are designed for efficiency, and when used in conjunction with the manufacturer-recommended prefab chimney, they can provide the enjoyment and high-heat output of wood without the waste.
Less Labor Intensive – Because pre-fabricated fireplaces and chimneys don’t require the time and labor intensive work of masonry construction, you are guaranteed to save money on installation costs. You also won’t have to worry about the system turning out different than you imagined, because with a pre-fabricated fireplace and chimney, you get exactly what you shopped for.
Less Maintenance – Pre-fabricated systems are designed to work efficiently and safely. If installed and used exactly as directed, these systems generally won’t require much maintenance.

The Importance Of Installation & Cleaning

If your pre-fabricated fireplace is not installed exactly as directed by the manufacturer, you will undoubtedly experience problems with efficiency and safety. A prefab fireplace is designed to work with a specific prefab chimney system, and straying from this recommendation can be a serious threat. Not only will your system burn inefficiently, it may cause a house fire. Manufacturers make it very clear how each system is to be used, and disobeying these guidelines will not only invalidate your warranty, it may void your insurance as well (should your system start a fire).

Keep your family safe and protect your investment by having your pre-fabricated fireplace and chimney system installed and maintained by a Magic Broom professional. We specialize in cleaning these systems and will make sure your prefab wood-burning fireplace is free of soot, creosote, and other buildup, and ready for another season of warmth. Schedule your appointment today!

Improving the effectiveness of your wood-burning fireplace could be as simple as installing an insert and Magic Broom is ready to explore this possibility with you. Cleaning your chimney, fireplace or stove is only a part of what we can do for you, so give us a call.