What should I do if I smell gas near my fireplace?
Fairview is propane country — large wooded lots where propane tanks and wood stoves carry the heat. So if you smell rotten-egg gas, get everyone outside without flipping a switch and call your propane supplier's emergency line or 911 from clear of the house. Propane is heavier than air and pools low, so leave rather than search. Then call us at (828) 545-0525.
Wood-heat country, but the propane still counts
Fairview's wooded lots up Cane Creek and Garren Creek make wood heat a natural choice, and plenty of homes lean on a stove or insert — but most of those same houses also have a propane line running to a fireplace, a log set, or a cooktop. That propane is what a gas smell is about, and it behaves nothing like wood smoke. It's heavier than air, so a leak drains toward the floor, the crawlspace, and the basement rather than rising to a window. Down low is where to be alert.
A faint whiff near a crawlspace counts too
Because propane pools instead of dispersing, a weak smell near a crawlspace hatch or a basement door deserves the same full response as a strong one at the hearth. Don't flip a switch, don't relight anything to burn it off, don't go hunting for the source — get everyone outside and call your propane supplier's emergency line or 911 from well clear of the house. While we're out, a wood-heat home is also worth a chimney check: creosote buildup without a fall sweep is the leading cause of chimney fires in these wooded coves.
The supplier clears it; the licensed fix is ours
Your propane supplier will shut the tank off and confirm the air is safe, but the house-side piping and the fireplace are licensed gas-contractor work in North Carolina — our lane, not the tank company's or a handyman's. We locate the leak with instruments, repair it, pressure-test the system, and permit with Buncombe County when the work requires it. Fairview is about fifteen minutes east of our Asheville showroom, so help is close. Keep (828) 545-0525 as the call that comes after your supplier.
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.
Related questions
- How do I check my gas fireplace for a gas leak?
- Who should I call about a suspected gas leak — the gas company or a fireplace technician?
- Where is the gas shutoff valve for my fireplace, and how do I turn it off in an emergency?
- Can a gas fireplace explode?
- Why does my gas fireplace smell like gas while it's running?

