Fireplace installation in Hoover AL - a fireplace built for the way you'll use it
A fireplace that looks nice but barely warms the room, or a wall waiting for one? We fit the right unit and vent it properly.
- Licensed and insured.
- Free on-site estimates.
- Replies within 1 business day.
Fireplace installation options we put in
New masonry fireplace
A brick or stone firebox and chimney built from the ground up, for a house without one or a room you're adding. It suits people who love a wood fire.
Inserts and gas fireplaces
A gas, pellet or certified wood insert set into the fireplace you have, or a new factory-built gas unit. These suit people who want the room to actually get warm.
Should I put in a wood fireplace, an insert or a gas unit?
Fireplace installation in Hoover means building a new masonry fireplace, setting a factory-built unit or fitting an insert into the firebox you already have. The right choice comes down to whether you want real heat or mostly the look of a fire, since most fireplaces are there for the feel of the room and some extra warmth, not as the house's main heat.
Most calls come from people with a fireplace that looks nice and does little, or a room where they've always pictured one. The price moves with the kind of fireplace you have now, whether the house already has gas, how the unit will vent and how much brick or stone goes around it. The schedule mostly turns on the gas line work and the city's permit and inspections, and I'll give you a figure for your own house at the estimate, once I've seen the room.
Fireplace installation, venting and the masonry around it
I start by asking whether you want real heat or mostly the look of a fire, and what kind of fireplace you have now, because that decides which options fit your house.
Seeing what you have
We look at whether your fireplace is masonry or factory-built and what shape the chimney is in, since that narrows down which units can go in.
Planning the vent
We work out the vent path before anything is ordered, so the unit, the chimney or wall and the room all line up.
Gas line by a licensed fitter
Any gas line work goes to a properly licensed gas fitter, while our crew sticks to the firebox, hearth and masonry.
Building the hearth and surround
We build the hearth and surround as solid as our concrete block walls and face it in brick or stone veneer that suits the house.
Why Hoover homeowners choose Caliber
I learned masonry on a city crew, where every job had to pass inspection and somebody else lived with it for years. I started this business in Hoover in 2021 to bring that habit to homes, so we don't hurry the parts nobody sees.
The owner prices it and runs it
I come out to look at your fireplace and give the estimate myself, then run the work on site alongside our crew, so the person who priced your job is the one building it.
Licensed and insured, ask to see it
We're licensed and insured, and if you want to see that before you sign, just ask and I'll bring it to the estimate so you're not taking our word for it.
Explained before we start
I walk you through what you're paying for and why before anything starts, and the work comes with our promise, satisfaction guaranteed. Call (205) 236-6688 to set up a visit.
What happens after you call about a fireplace in Hoover?
We plan a fireplace job around how you use the room and what's already in your house, and we tell you where the city's permit and inspections fall before anything gets scheduled.
or call (205) 236-6688
Call or send a message
Call (205) 236-6688 or use the form, and tell us what kind of fireplace you have and whether your house has gas service.
I come look at the room
I look at the fireplace and the chimney or outside wall, take measurements and talk through whether you want heat or mostly the look.
Your estimate
Your estimate lays out the option I'd suggest and why. If you hire us, we sort out what the city needs first and walk the finished job with you.
Talk through your fireplace with Caliber in Hoover
Tell us whether your fireplace is masonry or factory-built and whether the house already has gas, and we'll reply within one business day. I'll come out for a free on-site estimate, with no obligation to hire us.
Fireplace questions we hear in Hoover
Is a fireplace a good way to heat my home in Hoover?
An open wood fireplace isn't, because it's a very inefficient way to heat a home and drafts pull your warm air up the chimney. If you want real warmth, a gas, pellet or EPA-certified wood insert heats more efficiently and puts out less smoke. That's the first thing I ask about at the estimate.
How do I know which insert fits my fireplace?
Start by finding out whether your fireplace is masonry or factory-built, because a factory-built unit, the kind sold as zero-clearance, can only take an insert designed and tested for that specific unit. With a masonry chimney, it's fair to ask whether the installer is certified, since a certified installer makes sure the flue liner goes in correctly.
How much does it cost to install a gas fireplace insert?
Across the US, installing a gas insert or a new zero-clearance gas fireplace, gas line included, usually runs about $3,500 to $16,500 per job. That's a national planning range, not our price, and where your job lands depends on the unit, the gas line run and the venting. I'll give you a figure for your own Hoover home at the estimate.
Can a gas fireplace vent without a chimney?
Yes, a gas unit can vent straight out through the roof or the wall behind it, as well as up an existing chimney. Which way makes sense depends on where the fireplace sits and what's on the other side of that wall, and I look at both during the visit.
What license does a gas fitter need in Hoover?
Hoover's gas permits need a Master Gas Fitter Card from the Alabama Plumber & Gas Fitters Board or a state HVAC card, whichever applies, and the contractor also needs an active City of Hoover business license. The city expects every contractor and subcontractor to hold both a city license and the state licenses their trade requires, so it's fair to ask each trade on your job for both.
What is the best way to get the look of a fire in an old fireplace?
If you mostly want the look, electric, natural gas or propane logs fit into an existing fireplace without rebuilding anything. They aren't designed to be a real source of heat, so if you want warmth too, an insert is the better buy.
Work that often goes with a fireplace
Stone veneer installation
Thin stone set over a fireplace wall or chimney gives the room the look of solid rock without the weight of a full stone build.
Explore Stone veneer installationConcrete block walls
When you need a sturdy wall in the yard or behind a new fireplace, block laid on a good footing gives you a solid core.
Explore Concrete block wallsChimney repair
If your chimney has loose brick, cracked mortar or a worn cap on top, it's worth fixing before an insert or new liner goes into it.
Explore Chimney repair
Fireplace installation permits and homes in Hoover
The City of Hoover requires a residential building permit before any construction, remodels included, and its Building Inspection Department issues the permits for gas line work. Before we start, we check with the city about what your job needs and handle the permit with them when one is required. City inspectors check the work at stages along the way, and those inspections are booked by calling 205-444-7522. If your job needs a new gas meter, Spire sets it only after the city releases it, so that release is often what the last step waits on. You can pull a mechanical permit yourself for your own property, but then you have to do all the work.
We're based in Hoover and work across the Birmingham area. Whether the house already has gas service is one of the first things I ask here, because it changes the plan more than anything else, and we run into the same mix of older brick fireboxes and factory-built units on jobs in Vestavia Hills and Homewood.