How do I winterize my gas fire pit at the end of the season?
Because most Hendersonville pits sit on the natural-gas main, winterizing here usually means closing the gas at the pit's shutoff valve rather than hauling a tank, then drying the burner and pan and covering it before the first hard freeze. If yours runs off a propane cylinder instead, close the valve and store the tank upright outside, away from the house.
The gas-main shutdown
Downtown Main Street and Laurel Park homes are largely on the natural-gas mains, so a lot of built-in pits are hard-plumbed with a dedicated shutoff. For the winter, close that valve, cover the connection, and there's no cylinder to move — the retirement-community favorite of a quiet, low-maintenance sealed unit still needs its burner and igniter kept bone dry through five or six cold months.
Blow or brush the leaves out of the burner ports and pan first. A pit that ran clean in October turns into a spring headache if debris nests around the burner and traps moisture against the metal all winter.
Clay soil and a stressed connection
Hendersonville's clay-heavy soil is the local wrinkle. It settles and heaves through every freeze-thaw cycle, and that ground movement can put strain on a built-in pit's gas connection over a long winter — the same soil behavior that stresses the town's older masonry chimneys.
Before you fire the pit next spring, look at the flex line and union for any sign of pull or a leaning surround. If the connection shifted, don't force it lit — reworking or re-sealing a gas line is licensed work we permit through Henderson County, 25 minutes south of our Asheville showroom. Call (828) 545-0525 and we'll pressure-test it before it goes back into service.
Fireplace help in Hendersonville
We install and service fireplaces throughout Hendersonville and the rest of Henderson County — just 25 minutes south from our Asheville-area showroom.
Related questions
- What do I need to do to get my gas fire pit running again after it sat unused all winter?
- Should I cover my gas fire pit when I'm not using it?
- Should I leave the propane tank hooked up to my fire pit between uses?
- Can I use my gas fire pit in the winter?
- What's the proper way to shut down a gas fire pit after using it?