As temperatures start to drop, warming up with your fireplace sounds delightful. But before you do, Van Metre suggests keeping a few things in mind. All of our fireplaces, including the linear ones, are electronic ignition—so they don’t have a pilot. They are not on a switch. They are all on a remote. To get a better understanding of how the fireplace operates, remove the bottom plate. Here, you see the receiver box. This is what communicates with the remote to hit the electronic ignition to make the spark ignite the fireplace. When you press the on and off button, you should hear an audible beep. If you don't hear an audible beep, most likely the batteries are dead. To fix this, make sure the fireplace is off. Flip the receiver box over. The cover on the bottom will slide away, and you should see standard AA batteries. Replace those batteries and the issue should be resolved.
If the box isn't the issue, it could be the remote. Just because the red light comes on when you push On, it does not mean there is enough power to communicate with the box. Remove the battery door on the back of the remote, and replace that battery as well. If for any reason neither of these solutions work, look underneath the receiver box and look for loose wires or anything else that may be amiss. If you see anything, contact a professional. If it's a new Van Metre home and you're under warranty, definitely call us. We will come out, take a look, and resolve the issue.
Newer fireplace models may have additional features, like a battery backup. This feature allows your fireplace to be used as an emergency heat source in the event of a power outage. Make sure to have batteries in that battery backup. This would allow you to ignite the fireplace without power to your home. Newer models may also have a removable glass on the front panel. This will allow you to clean the glass as needed. If you remove the glass when reassembling make sure all the latches are realigned and fastened properly so the glass does not fall, shatter and damage the floor or any other aspect of the fireplace.
Remember, your Van Metre fireplace is mostly maintenance-free. You should not have to replace logs or filler within its lifetime. If the filament—which is the fluffy material in the center between the logs—seems to be burning, you can find replacement filament at any of your home improvement stores.
Lastly, remember this. On the receiver box, you have three positions: Remote, Manual On, Manual Off. Keep it in the remote position.
Now sit back and enjoy your Van Metre fireplace.