Fireplace installation in Cupertino CA - a heater that fits and vents the right way
Old fireplace that smokes, drafts or sits cold all winter? We fit an insert or new gas unit that suits your house and vents properly.
- Licensed and fully insured.
- Free estimates at your property.
- Replies within 1 business day.
What does fireplace installation in Cupertino involve?
Fireplace installation in Cupertino usually means one of two jobs, setting an insert into the fireplace you already have or putting in a new vented gas fireplace, and we do both here and across the cities around it, including Sunnyvale, Saratoga, Los Altos and Palo Alto. An insert is a heater that sits inside your existing firebox and works much like a freestanding wood stove.
Most people who call us have a fireplace that looks nice and does little, an old wood firebox that pulls warm air up the chimney or a metal unit that's seen better days, and they want something that actually warms the room. What moves the price is mostly which way you go, since an insert in a sound fireplace costs less than a new gas unit vented through a wall or the roof, plus how much surround, the finish around the unit, you want built. The schedule follows the same choices, and your written estimate lays out both for your house.
Is fireplace installation right for your home?
Drafty wood-burning fireplace
You barely use it because it sends more heat up the chimney than it puts in the room.
Tired metal fireplace
The firebox looks worn or rusty, and you want something cleaner and warmer without tearing out the wall.
Remodel or new addition
You're opening walls anyway, which is the easiest time to frame in a new fireplace and vent.
One room always cold
One room never keeps up with the rest of the house, and you'd like steady heat right there.
How we handle fireplace installation
I start with the fireplace you have now and how it vents, because that decides which units will fit, and nothing gets ordered until we know. In a masonry fireplace we look at the firebox and the flue liner, the lining inside the chimney, since an insert is only as good as the path its exhaust takes out. Then we set the unit and run the vent, keeping the air spaces between the vent and anything that can burn the way the maker's instructions ask, because one vent maker names skipping those clearances as a major cause of vent fires. We finish the surround and hearth, test it with you and clean up.
The finish around the unit is where masonry comes in. A lot of homeowners want the old brick covered or a new wall face built, and our stone veneer installation work gives the surround a natural stone look without the weight of full stone. When a new fireplace needs a solid base, a raised hearth or a chase built to house it, we build that with concrete block walls before the finish goes on.
Insert in your existing fireplace
This suits most houses with a sound masonry or metal fireplace, because the firebox and chimney are already there and the work is mostly fitting, venting and finishing. It's usually the quicker, lower-cost route.
New vented gas fireplace
This suits a house with no fireplace, a chimney past saving or a remodel where the walls are open, since the unit vents straight out through a wall or the roof. It's more work, with framing and a new surround, but you get a fireplace where you actually want one.
What happens when you call us about a fireplace in Cupertino?
Call or send the form
When you call (669) 215-2127 or use the form, I set up a time to come look at the fireplace myself. I'll ask what you've noticed and walk the room and the chimney with you.
Get a written estimate
You get a written estimate that says which unit fits, what we'll do and why, so you can weigh the price before anything is ordered. If the city needs to sign off on the job, we handle that before we start.
Install and walk it together
I'm on the job with our crew from setting the unit to finishing the surround. At the end we walk it together, light it and go over how it runs.
Will a new fireplace heat your house?
It'll warm a room, so keep your main heat.
Most fireplaces serve mainly for looks and some extra warmth, and as heaters they're usually very inefficient. The sensible way to plan one is as added warmth and atmosphere for the room you spend your evenings in, with your furnace or other system still doing the main work. An insert gets you a lot closer to stove-like heat than an open firebox will.
Examples of masonry work
Look through these examples of masonry work, from fireplaces and stone veneer to walls and paving, for ideas on what might suit your house.
Get a written estimate for your new fireplace
Tell us your fireplace type and the room you want to heat, and add a floor plan if you have one. We reply within one business day, and I come out myself for a free, no-obligation estimate.
Why Cupertino homeowners call D&R Cupertino Concrete and Masonry for fireplace installation
I write every estimate myself
I come out to look at each fireplace and write the estimate, and the work is done by me and our crew of masons. The person who measured your firebox is the one standing there when the unit goes in.
Based in Cupertino since 2013
We've been in business since 2013, and most of our calls come from homeowners who want an old problem fixed properly, not covered up. That's how we treat a fireplace too, so if the chimney or the wall behind it has a problem, you hear about it before we set anything.
Licensed and fully insured
We're licensed and fully insured, which matters on a job where the vent runs end up hidden behind the surround. Call (669) 215-2127 or send us the form and I'll set up a time to come look.
Fireplace installation questions
How much does it cost to install a gas fireplace in Cupertino?
Installing a gas fireplace across the US usually costs about $2,000 to $10,000 per job. Where yours lands depends mostly on whether it's an insert in a fireplace you already have or a new vented unit, and how much surround work you want. The written estimate I give you spells out your price, and it's satisfaction guaranteed on every job.
How long does fireplace insert installation take?
Most gas fireplace projects take one to three days, and an insert going into a sound existing fireplace sits at the short end of that. New framing, venting and surround work are what stretch it out.
Will any insert fit my factory-built fireplace?
No, a factory-built fireplace, the metal kind also called zero-clearance, needs an insert designed and tested for that exact unit. That match is what makes it more efficient and less polluting, so your existing fireplace really does decide what fits. We find out what your unit is before we suggest anything.
Are vent-free gas fireplaces a good idea?
We don't recommend them, because gas units built to run without outside venting raise indoor air quality concerns. In some places installing one is illegal, so we stick to units that vent outside.
How do I choose the right size fireplace insert for my room?
Start with a floor plan of your house and the room you want to heat, because that's what lets a hearth retailer match a stove or insert to the space. When I come out, I look at the same things, the room, the firebox and the vent, before we pick a unit.
When can I burn wood in my fireplace in the Bay Area?
The Bay Area Air Quality Management District's rule bars wood-burning fireplaces, wood stoves and pellet stoves in its district on Mandatory Burn Ban days, which come with a Spare the Air Alert when the district forecasts high fine particle pollution. The rule has some exemptions, and the one for wood heat covers only someone whose sole heat is an EPA certified wood-burning device registered with the district, with no permanently installed gas, propane or electric heat, subject to the district's verification. If you're weighing wood against gas, that's worth knowing before you buy.
Thinking about a new fireplace?
I'll come look at your fireplace myself and give you a written estimate saying what we'd do and why.
Other work that goes with a fireplace
What to plan for with fireplace installation in Cupertino
The city decides whether a fireplace job needs a permit, so if you're not sure about yours, ask and we'll check with the city, and when one is needed we handle the application and plan our start around the city's review. If you're planning gas for a new building, have us check where things stand, since a city bulletin reported that the city was directed to suspend enforcement of its all-electric requirement for new buildings after a federal appeals court decision.
Most fireplaces we see around here are original wood-burning fireboxes or metal units as old as the house, and it's the same on jobs in Sunnyvale and Saratoga, so we always start by finding out which one you have.