Does a standing pilot fireplace work better in a power outage than electronic ignition?
In Swannanoa, where storm recovery has homes being rebuilt and renovated, a standing pilot fireplace is exactly the kind of heat neighbors are asking for — millivolt ignition that lights with the grid down because the pilot flame powers its own valve. Electronic ignition needs electricity unless it's battery-backed. If you're rebuilding, spec the outage-proof ignition now, not after the next one.
Rebuilding with the last outage in mind
Swannanoa took hard damage, and the wave of rebuilds and renovations across the valley is a chance to do the heating right from the studs. We hear the same request over and over: a fireplace that works when the power doesn't. A millivolt standing pilot delivers precisely that — a closed loop with no circuit board to fail, lighting on the few millivolts its own pilot generates. The 1940s-to-1960s Grovemont homes that came through often have original masonry fireboxes; a sealed gas insert drops into that opening and turns a decorative, drafty hearth into a real, outage-proof heater. When the grid went down valley-wide, the homes that stayed warm had a wood fire or a self-lighting gas hearth — central furnaces and heat pumps went dark with everything else. Building that lesson in now is cheaper than retrofitting later.
River fog, Buncombe permits, close to home
The Swannanoa River valley pools cold air and hangs onto fog and damp, which is tough on masonry chimneys — one more reason a sealed direct-vent unit, which needs no chimney, makes sense in a rebuild. Natural gas serves the area, and the main stays pressurized whether or not your home has power. We permit through Buncombe County and pressure-test the line; connecting fuel is licensed work a general contractor on your rebuild can't legally finish alone. Come see millivolt and battery-backup units running before you frame the wall. Swannanoa is 15 minutes east of the showroom — call (828) 545-0525.
Fireplace help in Swannanoa
We install and service fireplaces throughout Swannanoa and the rest of Buncombe County — just 15 minutes east from our Asheville-area showroom.
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