I’m a first time fireplace owner and finally deciding it’s time to set-up the fireplace for use. I’ve been doing some reading and I think I’ve got most of the parts figured out. The damper seems to work fine and I can see up to the top of the chimney. There is a vent on the back wall of the fireplace that seems to be set-up to allow fresh air in from outside. There is a trap door on the bottom that I’m told is a place to sweep the ashes – although I can’t tell where it leads exactly. Perhaps it’s just meant to hold the ashes until I vacuum them out.
I bought a screen for the front and the little tool set with the poker, log grasper, broom and dust pain.
There’s a gas starter pipe.
This is where the problem came in. I’m told it is a gas starter. The problem is that the starter pipe is 4.5 inches above the ground. I’m told the standard clearance for a fireplace grate is to be 4 inches above the ground. Obviously the starter pipe needs to be a bit lower than that. Mine isn’t. I realized my starter pipe is set too high when I brought home a nice simple grate that I found at Do It Best hardware. The grate obviously didn’t fit as the starter pipe was too high.
I made a bunch of calls and went on a bit of a goose chase, but I learned a bunch about fireplace grates. I googled fireplace stores in my area and got forwarded to one store kinda far away that said they did sell grates that have 6″ legs – exactly what I needed. Unfortunately, their hours are not good, especially given that they aren’t that close to where I am.
I called a few local places and was told by one store the best solution is for me to buy an elbow for my gas starter pipe to lower it, which they would be willing to do for $125. While I don’t mind doing some basic mechanical stuff, I’m not one to mess with gas lines. I also didn’t think it made sense to pay $125 just so I can then use a more standard grate. He suggested the other workaround is to get a standard grate and prop it up on blocks. I didn’t think that sounded like the most stable solution.
A few more calls around, and I found a place not too far away that had late hours that had a fireplace grate with 6 inch legs in stock. It was a bit pricey at $120, but it was exactly what I needed. It is a very nice grate and has an “ember retainer” – which I learned is the thick mesh covering over the grate so the larger ember pieces don’t fall through and can continue burning with the fire.
So – the two places I found in my area that sold the fireplace grates with 6″ legs are:
and
I don’t know if either place will ship their products, as I’m guessing shipping will be a lot given the weight.
Let me know if you come across any other solutions.