Around Mars Hill, a stainless cap is cheap hardware, but the rural half of town points to a specific version: homes out Spring Creek and Gabriels Creek burn wood and propane, and a wood-burning flue wants a spark-arrestor cap to catch embers. University-area rentals, meanwhile, just need a solid cap kept in good repair.
Wood heat wants an ember screen
The rural valleys around Mars Hill lean on wood stoves and fireplaces, and a wood flue throws sparks — a cap built with a spark-arrestor screen catches embers before they land on a roof or the dry woods below. In Madison County's colder pockets, those fires run long and hot, which is exactly when an ember catching in a gutter full of leaves becomes a real problem. Up the Spring Creek and Gabriels Creek valleys, where the woods crowd the houses, a stray ember has plenty to catch. These are working heaters, not decoration, so on a wood-burning chimney the arrestor screen is the cap's main job, not a nice-to-have.
Rentals and easy upkeep
Closer to the university, the housing is heavy on rentals that want simple, reliable heat and low fuss — and a good cap fits that, keeping rain off the damper and birds out of the flue with nothing for a tenant to maintain. Whether the chimney is masonry or a factory-built prefab with a chase cover changes the part and the price, so we confirm which you've got before quoting, then handle it in one trip. University-area rentals turn over often, so a landlord's cap earns its keep by needing zero tenant attention.
Thirty minutes north
Mars Hill is a straightforward Madison County run from the Asheville showroom, and a cap rides along with the sweep or inspection a wood-burner should have every year anyway. It's quoted upfront, and the trucks carry common cap sizes so the arrestor cap is usually a same-visit fit. Madison County's colder pockets make the fall inspection worth doing before the first hard freeze — call (828) 545-0525.
Fireplace help in Mars Hill
We install and service fireplaces throughout Mars Hill and the rest of Madison County — just 30 minutes north from our Asheville-area showroom.
Related questions
- How much does chimney repair cost before an insert can be installed?
- How much does a chimney sweep or cleaning cost?
- How much does it cost to replace a rusted chimney chase cover?
- How much does a chimney inspection cost, and what do the different levels cost?
- What does a wood-burning fireplace cost per year in upkeep?