Does a fireplace I never use still need to be inspected?
Yes — and at nearly 2,650 feet, an unused Waynesville fireplace is the one you can least afford to neglect. Homes here lean hard on their hearths through a heating season that runs weeks longer and 10 to 15 degrees colder than Asheville's. A fireplace you're saving for the deep cold is the one that has to light on the worst night.
Drafty old Hazelwood hearths don't rest well
Much of Waynesville's older housing — the Hazelwood and Frog Level stock — was built around open masonry fireplaces that already pull cold air into the room when they're cold. Leave one dormant and it does worse: the open flue invites nesting birds and squirrels, and the long, damp mountain off-season lets moisture settle into brick and mortar that our high-elevation freeze-thaw then cracks. Waynesville holds cold longer than the valley towns below it, so that freeze cycle runs harder on an idle chimney here than almost anywhere we serve. What looks like a fireplace you can relight in November may have quietly become one that shouldn't be lit until it's checked.
Gas, wood, and the pre-season look
Waynesville runs on a mix of natural gas and propane, and each has its own idle risk — a dormant gas line and its fittings can seep unnoticed, while an unused wood flue holds old creosote and blockage that turns a first fire into a hazard. Because we're about 35 minutes west of the Emma Road showroom, the smart move here is booking the inspection in late summer or early fall, well before the first hard snap, not after your pilot won't hold. If you're buying a Haywood County home and don't know the hearth's history, have it inspected before you ever light it. Call (828) 545-0525.
Fireplace help in Waynesville
We install and service fireplaces throughout Waynesville and the rest of Haywood County — just 35 minutes west from our Asheville-area showroom.
Related questions
- I just moved into a home with a fireplace — should I have it inspected before using it?
- Do I need a chimney inspection when buying or selling a home?
- Why is there moisture or rust in a fireplace I rarely use?
- How do I keep birds and animals from nesting in my fireplace vent or chimney?
- How should I shut down and protect a fireplace in a second home that sits vacant for months?