Fireplace installation in Salinas CA - a fire that fits how you'll use it

Most people who call us have an old firebox that's drafty or barely used, or a room they've always wanted a fireplace in, and the right answer depends on which one you've got. The price moves with that choice, along with gas or wood, how far a gas line has to run, what the chimney needs before anything goes in and how you want the front finished. The schedule mostly turns on getting the unit delivered, any chimney work and any inspections. At Blockworks Salinas Concrete and Masonry we're based in Salinas and work in the cities around it, and your estimate writes down the work, the materials and the reasons for each, so you see your own figure and can compare it fairly with other bids.

I start by sorting out with you whether you want a fire for the look of it or for real heat, and whether you have a masonry firebox or a factory-built unit, because that decides what can go in. Next I look over the firebox and chimney, since a cracked flue or loose brick has to be dealt with before anything new goes in. Once you've picked a unit, our crew cleans out the old firebox, runs the venting and any gas line the unit needs, and sets the fireplace or insert the way its maker's instructions call for, kept clear of anything that can burn. Then we finish the hearth and the face and clean up, so you're left with a working fireplace and a clean room.

Some fireplaces need more masonry around them. When we build a fireplace on site, the base and core often go up in block, the same way we build concrete block walls, and a new fireplace or a tired brick one can be faced in stone veneer for a different look without tearing out the firebox.

Whether your fireplace job needs a permit is the city's call, and the City of Salinas Permit Center is the office that reviews, issues and inspects building permits here. Its Permit Services staff walk applicants through the application, answer questions and help with the documents, and you can reach them at 831-758-7251 or epermit@salinas.gov. When your job needs a permit, we handle the application and the inspections with the city or county office that covers your property, and we keep you posted on where it stands.

If you're leaning toward wood, we'll ask you to check what's allowed in your area before we plan it, and EPA says the state or local air quality agency is the one to ask which wood-burning units, if any, can go in. We see the same mix of older brick fireboxes and newer factory-built units on jobs in Prunedale and Monterey, so that first look at what you have counts for a lot.