Should I get a fireplace and chimney safety inspection before buying an older home?
Yes, and Leicester's rural character shapes what to look for. Many homes out Sandy Mush and Turkey Creek run on propane and burn wood, some of the old farmhouses started on coal, and a few remote properties have limited electrical capacity. Before you buy, have the flue scoped and the fuel system tested — an older mountain chimney rarely tells its whole story from the room.
Coal, wood, propane — a lot of history in one flue
Some of Leicester's older farmhouses began life burning coal, then moved to wood or propane over the decades — and a flue set up for one fuel isn't automatically safe for the next. Wood stoves get vented into masonry never built for them; gas logs get dropped in without a check. On the wooded rural lots out here, wood heat is popular, which means creosote is the leading cause of chimney fires when the flue goes unswept. We camera the flue for creosote and cracks and evaluate whether it truly fits the fuel you'll burn.
When the power is least reliable
Some remote Leicester properties run on limited electrical capacity, and rural valleys here drain cold air 5 to 8 degrees below Asheville on a clear winter night. That's the case for heat that doesn't depend on the grid — a millivolt gas unit or a wood stove keeps working when an electric appliance is dead. As a licensed gas contractor we test the propane line and connections, and we pull the Buncombe County permit on any work.
Fifteen minutes west
Leicester is 15 minutes west of our Asheville showroom, so we can get out inside your due-diligence window. Any relining or repair the inspection turns up becomes the seller's credit. Call (828) 545-0525.
Fireplace help in Leicester
We install and service fireplaces throughout Leicester and the rest of Buncombe County — just 15 minutes west from our Asheville-area showroom.