How do I winterize my gas fire pit at the end of the season?
In Black Mountain, plan for a long freeze window on both ends — Swannanoa Valley temperature inversions push mornings 10 to 15 degrees colder than Asheville and frost lingers into late spring. Shut the fuel off, dry the burner and pan, and cover the pit tight well before the first hard freeze, or store a freestanding unit indoors once the tank is disconnected.
Inversions stretch the cold at both ends
At 2,405 feet the valley's cold-air pooling means frost dates run later into spring than they do fifteen minutes west in Asheville. Your pit's burner is exposed to freeze-thaw for extra weeks compared with a pit down in the city, so winterize early and un-winterize late — don't trust a warm April afternoon when the next clear morning could still dip below freezing.
Around Montreat, the heavily wooded, shaded lots keep everything cool and damp, so a pit up there dries out slowly and holds moisture longer. Make sure the cover sheds water and the pan drains rather than trapping it.
Killing the fuel for the season
Black Mountain sits on the natural-gas main, so many built-in pits around downtown and the Swannanoa Valley are hard-plumbed — for those, just close the pit's own shutoff valve so nothing seeps into a cold burner over the winter. If yours runs off a propane cylinder instead, close the tank valve, disconnect it, and store it upright outdoors, never inside.
A masonry-surround pit can't come indoors, so the snug burner cover matters more. If the gas line needs any work, that's licensed piping we permit through Buncombe County — call (828) 545-0525 and we'll handle it, only 15 minutes from the shop.
Fireplace help in Black Mountain
We install and service fireplaces throughout Black Mountain and the rest of Buncombe County — just 15 minutes east from our Asheville-area showroom.
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