Richmond Refractory gas-burning fireplaces, factory built

The reports, as CPSC published them

1. No one hurt

   Made Feb 7, 2017 · , sent to the company Apr 4, 2017 · , published by CPSC Apr 18, 2017

   The product, in the report: The product is a vented, natural gas fireplace log set

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   The Richmond Refractory Gas Log set we purchased from Woodland Direct online in the fall, 2016 “is no longer available” from the company. We had chips from the original set “pop” and come out of the hearth onto the floor (JPG photos attached above). The email string below details our experience from our first report to our latest request for information regarding the product. The company stopped corresponding when we began asking for information about the product and the company’s policies. As stated in our last email, we would like to know if the product was discontinued due to manufacturing defects. We would like to know if this product is a danger to use and, if so, how is the company going to deal with those who purchased the product.

   Since the January 22, email, chips from at the replacement set have come out of the hearth as well. Can you help us get the company to respond?

   Email exchange [REDACTED] and Woodland Direct

   From: [REDACTED] Sent: Sunday, January 22, 2017 7:09 PM To: [REDACTED] Cc: [REDACTED] Subject: Re: Woodland Support Ticket Update Customer Notification A recent visit to your site re: the Richmond Refractory gas log set we purchased revealed “this item is no longer available.” We would like to know why. (See email exchange below.) Based on our experience; are product quality/reliability (manufacture), safety or liability issues the reason? If so, please advise what action Woodland is taking for customers who 1) already purchased the product 2) experienced problems regarding exploding chips.

   [REDACTED] [REDACTED]

   From: [REDACTED] Sent: Monday, December 12, 2016 12:25 PM To: [REDACTED] Cc: [REDACTED] Subject: Re: Woodland Support Ticket Update Customer Notification We received the replacement log set. Thank you. However, there has been no response to our requests for gas line specification information, the warranty and our offer to return the chipped logs for your inspection. This then is our third written request. To date: You have not provided the gas line specifications you say are needed to fulfill the product warranty. You have not provided an electronic or a paper copy of the warranty itself. There is still nothing on the web site product warranty tab. You have not provided a prepaid shipping label so we can return the chipped logs and chips for your examination. We are retaining the box and packing material from the replacement set to do so. Therefore, we will challenge your contention that we are responsible for future replacement during the warranty period should any problems occur with the new set. We maintain our position that the chipping was the result of a flaw in the manufacturing process since there have been no further incidents during multiple fires. Please respond at your earliest convenience.

   [REDACTED] [REDACTED]

   From: [REDACTED] Sent: Thursday, December 1, 2016 9:13 AM To: [REDACTED] Subject: Re: Woodland Support Ticket Update Customer Notification As a follow up, please forward a copy of the warranty via USPS or email. There is nothing on the warranty tab for the product on your site. Also, please provide a prepaid shipping label so we can return the logs and chips to you in your own packaging for analysis. Perhaps your own investigation can help answer the questions posed in the email below. Otherwise, we will continue to question your policy and position regarding the replacement logs.

   [REDACTED] [REDACTED]

   From: [REDACTED] Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2016 4:00 PM To: [REDACTED] Cc: [REDACTED] Subject: Re: Woodland Support Ticket Update Customer Notification [REDACTED], First, thank you for sending the replacement logs. I do have a couple of questions, though, as I’m perplexed at having to have to incur the expense of a gas professional for the replacement.

   1. The fireplace was here when we bought the house; it’s not a recent change from wood to gas, and the fireplace was operational. Nothing in the piping or delivery of the gas to the fireplace was altered or changed. The only thing we did was change to your fireplace logs.

   2. Having once worked in plumbing, the manufacturer’s also clearly call out the recommended PSI for their plumbing fixtures. I’m not sure why it is that you’re unable to provide recommended BTUs or air to fuel ratios for your product up front. I’ve read through the explanation that was sent and it seems to me a lot of legalese instead of pertinent information that a consumer needs to get maximum performance from your product. It does, however, pretty clearly lay the onus of performance of your product on the gas professional. It also does the gas professional a disservice as you don’t publish how to get the maximum performance from your product.

   3. You state that you need a gas professional to tell you the “BTUs for the gas line, the gas pressure going into the valve, etc.” to eliminate the exterior issues of what happened to the logs. That tells me that you DO have some guidelines and recommended pressures to follow, but again, these are not shared with the consumer who purchases your product. Put another way, based on the information you’re asking for from the “gas professional”, how can you summarily eliminate the exterior issues, unless you DO have some guidelines/recommended pressures?

   4. To take the BTU issue a step further, if there were issues with the gas line or pressures, would we not continue to have the problem of pieces of the log(s) exploding off the logs? Since the initial occurrence, we’ve used the fireplace without the incident happening again. So if it is a pressure issue, why isn’t the same thing continually happening with the logs? This is probably the piece that has me most perplexed and would like your take on this aspect as well.

   Again, we do appreciate you sending replacement logs. Just trying to ascertain why we need to incur the expense of having a “gas professional” hook up an existing gas line to your product without benefit of knowing how to get maximum performance from your product. It sounds as if you know what the parameters are, but are unable to disclose them to the consumers that purchased your product.

   [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED]

   From: [REDACTED] Sent: Tuesday, November 29, 2016 9:17 PM To: [REDACTED] Subject: Fw: Woodland Support Ticket Update Customer Notification

   [REDACTED] [REDACTED]

   From: Woodland Direct, Inc. <customersupport@woodlanddirect.com> Sent: Tuesday, November 29, 2016 1:01 PM To: [REDACTED] Subject: RE: Woodland Support Ticket Update Customer Notification Hi [REDACTED],

   How are you? Did you have a good holiday? In order for us to maintain the warranty I will need a gas professional to tell me the BTU’s for the gas line, the gas pressure going into the valve and the air to fuel ratio. This will help us to eliminate any exterior issues for what happened to your logs. I would hate to send you out a new set of logs and have the same thing happen.

   I understand if you don’t want to pay for a gas professional to come out, but after this initial replacement logs that I will send you, you would be responsible for purchasing any replacement logs.

   I will have my customer service send out replacement lgs. Please let me know if you will have a gas professional check on the gas pressure, BTU output, and air to fuel ration.

   Sincerely, [REDACTED] | Technical Sales Representative [REDACTED] | www.woodlanddirect.com direct: [REDACTED] fax: [REDACTED] p: 800.919.1904 ext. [REDACTED] pinterest | facebook | twitter | youtube From: [REDACTED] Sent: 11/22/2016 12:20 pm GMT-05:00 Subject: Re: Woodland Support Ticket Update Customer Notification INTERN

   If you have to large of a gas line that doesn’t provide proper gas to air mixture that would cause sooting on the logs and those would catch on fire. I need a gas professional on the ground to see the amount BTUs that you’re line is pushing out as this is only meant to support up to 50,000 BTUs if you’re line is pushing a lot more that would cause your issue and only your gas professional can tell me that. Sincerely, [REDACTED] | Technical Sales Representative [REDACTED] | www.woodlanddirect.com direct: [REDACTED] fax: [REDACTED] p: 800.919.1904 ext. [REDACTED] pinterest | facebook | twitter | youtube From: Woodland Direct, Inc. <customersupport@woodlanddirect.com> Sent: Tuesday, November 22, 2016 12:15:09 PM To: [REDACTED] Subject: Woodland Support Ticket Update Customer Notification INTERN

   Thank you for contacting Woodland Direct Customer Support. We are pleased to inform you that your Customer Support Ticket, [REDACTED] , has been updated. Support Ticket Subject: Order Inquiry Support Ticket Status: Open: Awaiting Customer Reply Most Recent Message: I really can’t tell if the chips caught fire or not. Especially the ones I found under the grate. If you’re suggesting there is a pressure issue and not a manufacturing defect (there have been no chip incidents in several fires since) then you need to provide a PSI reading before I pay for a service call or buy additional attachments. I did not see any reference to PSI in the installation instructions. [REDACTED] [REDACTED] From: Woodland Direct, Inc. <customersupport@woodlanddirect.com> Sent: Tuesday, November 22, 2016 6:41 AM To: [REDACTED] Subject: RE: Support Ticket# [REDACTED] Updated: Order Inquiry Hi [REDACTED],

   Are you saying that the chips are not catching fire?

   For this not to happen again you need to either have a gas professional come out check the gas pressure give me a call so we can turn down the pressure to give you a good mixture or you will need to purchase a safety pilot valve that will turn down the gas pressure at the burner.

   Once we decide one of those we can send you new logs to be replaced under warranty.

   Let me know what you would like to do.

   Sincerely, [REDACTED] | Technical Sales Representative [REDACTED] | www.woodlanddirect.com direct: [REDACTED] fax: [REDACTED] p: 800.919.1904 ext. [REDACTED] pinterest | facebook | twitter | youtube From: [REDACTED] Sent: 11/21/2016 4:59 pm GMT-05:00 To: [REDACTED] Subject: Re: Support Ticket# [REDACTED] Updated: Order Inquiry I did not get your email. [REDACTED] forwarded it this morning. I left a voice mail with answers to your questions. Here they are: It’s connected to natural gas. I do not know the pressure. The sand from the kit covers the burner. The damper is open all the way and there is no smoke in the room. The chimney was recently cleaned too. We have used the fireplace since the chips came off the logs and so far it has not happened again. You can reach me by phone at [REDACTED]. [REDACTED] [REDACTED] From: Woodland Direct, Inc. <customersupport@woodlanddirect.com> Sent: Monday, November 21, 2016 11:18 AM To: [REDACTED] Subject: Support Ticket# [REDACTED] Updated: Order Inquiry

   Thank you for contacting Woodland Direct Customer Support. We are pleased to inform you that your Customer Support Ticket, [REDACTED] , has been updated. Support Ticket Subject: Order Inquiry Support Ticket Status: Open: Awaiting Customer Reply Most Recent Message: Hi [REDACTED],

   I’m one of the licensed techs here, and I did receive the pictures from your wife’s computer.

   I have a few questions to ask so I can see what the problem is so this doesn’t happen again, if you can respond back that would help me out greatly.

   What type of gas are you using? What is the gas pressure going into the burner? Did you cover the burner with the sand that came with the kit? Is your damper open all the way when you were burning? Did you get a lot of smoke into the home when you were burning?

   Sincerely,

   [REDACTED] Customer Service Representative

   Bought from

   Woodland Direct, Minnesota

   Bought

   Sep 1, 2016, about then

   Where

   Santa Rosa, California: Home/Apartment/Condominium

   Who was involved

   Unspecified

   The reporter’s relation to them

   Unspecified

   As this report names them

   Brand Richmond Refractory, made or sold by Tretco Wholesale

   How badly, in CPSC’s words

   Incident, No Injury

CPSC’s disclaimer

Sources