The technician showed me exactly what he was doing, step by step, while he worked. It was really interesting to look inside the flue with his tablet camera. Very open service!
Fireplace and Stove Repair for Cherry Hill's Gas Inserts and Wood Stoves
Cherry Hill's housing runs older than most of the county — 72.8 percent of it predates 1980 — and the gas inserts, gas log sets, and wood stoves inside those houses are old enough to need appliance repair more often than the chimney needs rebuilding. We check the pilot, the damper, and the door seal with a fire actually burning, then tell you plainly which one needs the work.
5.0From 15 Google reviews38 towns across 11 counties, phones answered 7:00 AM to 9:00 PM, every day.
Appliance first, chimney second
81.3 percent of Cherry Hill households heat with utility gas, and just 157 — about half a percent — list wood as their primary heat, though that count says nothing about how many working fireplaces sit on top of a gas furnace already doing the job. Across both groups, most of what gets called a chimney problem is actually a pilot, a valve, a gasket, or a hinge that has simply worn out.
Dampers That Have Not Moved Since the Split-Levels Went Up
A lot of Cherry Hill's older stock — the colonials, ranches, and split-levels concentrated in the 1960s and 1970s — still has the original open masonry fireplace, and its throat damper gets worked maybe a handful of times a winter. A plate moved twice a season seizes on its hinge pin, and forcing it can bend the plate rather than free it. We work it by hand first and confirm it seats fully closed and swings fully open.
- A damper stuck open wastes conditioned air every day the fireplace sits cold
- A damper stuck shut pushes smoke back into the room the moment a fire is lit
Cherry Hill's factory-built fireplaces are now 37 to 56 years old. Age is usually the actual diagnosis, not the flue.
Six Signs the Appliance Is the Problem
Most of what gets blamed on the chimney is actually happening at the appliance connected to it.
- A gas pilot flame that catches, holds a few seconds, then goes dark on its own
- A wood stove that burns hot and fast no matter how far the air control is closed
- Stove door glass that blackens within a single evening's fire
- A damper plate that will not sit flush open or closed
- A faint gassy smell near a gas log set that is not running
- A wall switch that fires the igniter but produces no flame
Wood Stoves and Inserts on Their Second or Third Owner
Cherry Hill's 1970s and 1980s houses — 5,578 units from one decade, 3,290 from the next — arrived with the first generation of factory-built, zero-clearance fireplaces, now 37 to 56 years old. Plenty are on a second or third owner who has never seen the manufacturer's nameplate, and some model lines are simply gone. When a firebox has cracked panels, the honest answer is often a listed replacement sized to the existing chimney, not a repair kit for hardware nobody makes anymore.
- Refractory panels, door gaskets, and glass matched where parts still exist
- A straight answer when replacement is the honest fix, not repair
The Camera Comes Out Before the Quote Does
Every visit ends with a flue pass on camera, whether the fix was the appliance or something behind it, and the photographs stay on file. That matters more for a service-area business than one with a storefront: nobody is walking past to check the work, so the record has to. It matters at resale too — Cherry Hill's own Fire Department SDI division runs the smoke and carbon-monoxide certificate inspection ahead of settlement, and asks for three to four weeks' notice to do it.
From recent visits
Fireplace and stove work, photographed on site
The flue behind a gas insert, viewed on the camera monitor before any part gets ordered.
A refurbished firebox with new refractory panels and a reseated damper, ready to relight.
A gas pilot and thermocouple checked with the appliance actually running, not just eyeballed cold.
A throat damper worked open and closed by hand to confirm it seats and swings free.
What Cherry Hill homeowners say
5.0
15 reviews on Google
Read on
I have an ancient farm home with an unlined brick chimney. They cleaned the soot away with soft brushing without disturbing any of the ancient interior mortar joints.
The tech pointed out a small fracture in our firebrick that I would have overlooked entirely. Patched it up there for a very fair amount.
Fireplace and stove service questions
Is a stuck pilot always a chimney problem?
Usually not. It is most often a worn thermocouple or gas valve — appliance parts we check before assuming the flue is at fault.
My gas insert lights and then goes out. What is that?
Almost always the pilot assembly or a weak safety-valve signal, not the chimney. We watch the flame while the appliance runs to find out which.
How old is too old for a factory-built fireplace?
No fixed age, but many of Cherry Hill's factory-built units date to the 1970s and 1980s — 37 to 56 years old — and parts for some models are gone.
We barely use our fireplace. Does it still need attention?
Yes. A damper worked only a few times a season can seize on its hinge, and an unused flue still collects debris. We check both.
Do you service wood stoves as well as gas?
Both. Wood stove visits focus on the door gasket and glass seal; gas visits focus on the pilot, thermocouple, and valve.
More chimney services
Chimney Sweeping
A camera goes down the flue before any brush does, so what comes out is photographed, not guessed at.
See the serviceChimney Inspection
Two inspection levels, one written report — the right one depends on what has actually changed since the last visit.
See the serviceChimney Repair
Crowns, caps, flashing, and liners, addressed in the order that actually stops water from getting in.
See the service