How do I keep birds and animals from nesting in my fireplace vent or chimney?
Fletcher is natural-gas country, and most of its 1990s-subdivision and newer-corridor homes run sealed builder-grade gas fireplaces whose outdoor vent termination is screened at the factory. Keeping that screen intact and clear of wasps, birds, and leaf packs is the whole animal-defense job — there's rarely an open masonry flue here for a squirrel to den in.
Builder-grade gas, and its low sidewall vent
The subdivisions along the airport road and the I-26 corridor were built with direct-vent gas fireplaces terminating at a screened cap, often low on a sidewall. Because that screen is factory and sealed, animals can't den behind it — but wasps will build in the warm housing and birds will try the louvers, and a packed termination starves the burner and can trip the unit out.
The tell is usually performance: a flame that won't light cleanly, or a fireplace that shuts itself down. A quick inspection and cleaning of the termination screen, not a new cap, is almost always the fix on these homes.
Commercial properties and the licensed side
Fletcher's airport-area commercial buildings run gas fireplaces and outdoor features too, and their terminations foul the same way — often higher off the ground and more easily overlooked than a home's. New or repaired gas venting, residential or commercial, is licensed work permitted through Henderson County and pressure-tested.
Twenty minutes south of the shop, a seasonal check keeps these screened terminations clear before heating season. If something's nested and damaged the venting, we'll flag it rather than let a starved burner limp along all winter. Call (828) 545-0525.
Fireplace help in Fletcher
We install and service fireplaces throughout Fletcher and the rest of Henderson County — just 20 minutes south from our Asheville-area showroom.
Related questions
- Do chimney caps need to be inspected or replaced?
- What should I check on the outside vent cap of a direct vent fireplace?
- How often should the venting on a direct vent gas fireplace be inspected?
- Does an outdoor wood-burning fireplace chimney need sweeping too?
- How do I know when my chimney needs to be swept?