We went to Toronto Home Comfort to get a napoleon gas fireplace installed. We have a relatively small living room so our most significant requirement was that it be a small and unobtrusive installation. I expressed to Alex (sales rep.) several times that we wanted the exhaust installed to the minimum height clearance so that a small mantel could be used. When the installer showed up, my wife re-iterated that we wanted the minimum height clearance. The installer tried to pursuade my wife that we should go for a taller exhaust as this would improve the flame of the fireplace. As the flame wasn't our priority, my wife re-stated that we wanted the minimum height clearance.
After the numerous directions about the height clearance, the installer installed the vent pipe with a clearance of 18" from the top of the fireplace to the centre-line of the exhaust. This is 8" higher than the 10" minimum specified by the manufacturer and requested repeatedly by us. Our house is double-brick construction, so re-drilling the exhaust hole to the proper height can't be done (without creating structural issues and an ugly patch-job on the outside wall).
The 8" difference in height now means that we will have to put in a bulkhead to hide the exhaust. If it was installed as we requested, we would have been able to hide the exhaust under the mantle. This would have given us the small, unobtrusive look we were hoping for.
Simply put: We didn't get what we asked for!
Other annoyances:
1) Alex forgot about our 1st appointment to do the on-site estimate. He initially apologized and then later claimed that we had rescheduled the appointment. We didn't. He seems to have trouble keeping-track of his clients.
2) The installer could have cut into the existing gas line that ran withing 6' of the fireplace. Instead he chose to use an old connection-point (for our old water heater) and snake (sloppily) 25' of yellow flexible gas line across the basement roof. Easier for him but it really makes things look sloppy in the basement.
