Should I get a fireplace and chimney safety inspection before buying an older home?
Yes, and in Fairview the wood flue is where your attention belongs. These are wooded rural lots where wood heat is natural and propane is the common gas, and creosote buildup is the leading cause of chimney fires when a flue goes a season without a sweep. Before you buy, have that flue scoped and the fuel system checked.
Wood heat means watching the creosote
Fairview's big wooded lots make burning wood the obvious choice, and a lot of homes out toward Cane Creek and Garren Creek lean on a stove or a wood fireplace all winter. The catch is creosote — the flammable tar that coats a flue and, unswept, causes chimney fires. A previous owner's burning habits are baked into that flue, and a general home inspection can't measure it. We run a camera through, gauge the buildup, and check the liner, crown, and cap for the damage heavy wood use leaves.
Propane country, licensed connections
Fairview is propane rather than gas-main territory, and connecting a tank, regulator, and appliance is licensed work — a showroom or a delivery crew legally can't run or connect it. If the home has a gas hearth, we test the line and connections as a licensed gas contractor and pull the permit with Buncombe County. If it's wood you're keeping, a sealed EPA stove or insert burns cleaner and produces far less creosote than an old open fireplace.
Fifteen minutes east, inside your window
Fairview is 15 minutes east of our Asheville showroom, so we can get out while your due-diligence clock is still running — which is when a chimney finding is a seller credit instead of your bill. Call (828) 545-0525.
Fireplace help in Fairview
We install and service fireplaces throughout Fairview and the rest of Buncombe County — just 15 minutes east from our Asheville-area showroom.