Progress ... or something like it
Finally ... finally ... finally
It's been about a month or so, took about that long for my brain to cool off from the off-the-hook silliness (I'm self-censoring, if you can't tell) involved with getting the gas service turned on.
Suffice to say it took FOUR appointments (and consumed THREE half-vacation days) to finally have the gas service turned on. One of the appointments was pretty funny, in retrospect: I actually started to run down the street after the National Grid truck, but didn't think it was worth an aneurism (considering how out of shape I'm in). Once I found out about ANOTHER form that had to be completed (proof of service line buried to spec), dropped it off for the plumber to complete (don't even ask if he should have known about the form), had the plumber come back to add an "isolation union" required by the Gas company, by the time the FOURTH service call happened, it took all of about twenty minutes for the technician to install the meter and test fire the fireplace (for the first time...hooray!).
Oh and I forgot to mention the Propane-to-Natural Gas conversion escapades: back and forth with the online company I bought the fireplace (and LP/NG conversion kit, remote, blower, and vent kit) from, to try to get them to send me the _corrrect_ pilot orifice for NG. I comprehensively documented the issue (pictures, scanned pics of installation guides, etc), probably a dozen emails back and forth, was shipped incorrect additional parts (and _another_ complete conversion kits, but could not get them to send me the correct five-dollar pilot orifice. I finally gave up, and ordered the NG pilot orifice from a different online fireplace parts company, including shipping cost $13 (I grit my teeth a little ...yet more dental work needed). Finally found a local 'FMI'- certified fireplace installer willing to do the conversion - though I hadn't bought the fireplace from them - and they completed setting up the fireplace (install blower, remote, etc). $250. for the service call, money well spent, I think ... would have taken me _much_much_ longer. I won't hold it against them that one of the wires came off because the crimped connection interfered with the louvered access panel when it opened ... easy enough fix, though a minute or three anxiety when the fireplace wouldn't start back up immediately.
So ... two years later :-o we _finally_ have a working fireplace. Way cool to push a button on the remote, and it fires right up. With the thermostatically controlled blower on, it throws off quite a bit of heat ... but still too early in the season to know how much a difference it'll make it the heart of the winter.
I'm now focused on design and fabrication of the fireplace hearth(s), mantel(s) and surround(s) ... one for each room :-). I'm still planning to build everything from GFRC (glass fiber reinforced concrete), with a minor segue way thinking about casting everything in fiberglass refinforced gypsum (GFRG) ... but I'm back to doing it all in GFRC. Pretty complex design: wrap-around hearth (with rope-edge detail), 'bolection' molding surround for the Kitchen-facing side, and 'Acanthus Leaf Corbel' on each side of the fireplace, facing the Den. The top will have crown molding around the perimeter, with a curved side facing the Den. I'll scan and post a few sketches I've done. Stay tuned...
