Fireplaces and Fire Pits in Apache Junction

Apache Junction was incorporated on November 24, 1978, at the meeting point of the Apache Trail and the road east toward Florence. Most of the city lies in Pinal County, with only a small strip on the Maricopa County side. Its housing is a mix you don't see elsewhere in the Valley: site-built homes, manufactured homes and parks for winter residents. The Census Bureau's 2020 to 2024 survey puts the median year built at 1994, with 33 percent of homes built in 2000 or later and 20 percent before 1980.

Heat here is mostly electric, 83 percent of homes, the highest share we track. Utility gas heats only about 11 percent. Propane heats 4.0 percent, the highest rate of any town in our area and roughly four times the Phoenix figure. So when someone in Apache Junction has a gas fireplace or fire pit, there is a fair chance it runs on a tank in the yard rather than a line from the street.

Propane changes the job

A propane appliance runs at a different pressure than a natural gas one and uses different orifices. A fireplace or fire pit built for natural gas cannot simply be hooked to a tank; it needs the maker's propane parts, and the reverse is true too. When a burner flame is lazy, sooty or roaring, a mismatched orifice or a tired regulator at the tank is one of the first things we look at.

Low flame on a cold night can also be the tank itself. A nearly empty tank or a worn regulator can give the same symptoms as a bad valve, so we check the supply before replacing anything. A thermopile or gas valve typically runs $150 to $300 in HomeGuide's guide.

Under the Superstitions

The city backs right up to the Superstition Mountains, and Goldfield, the old mining camp founded in 1893, sits off Highway 88 at the edge of town. Open ground on the east side means wind, and wind means dust packed into fire-pit burners, igniters and glass media. Monsoon storms add rain driven sideways into chase tops and outdoor fireboxes.

Our burner diagnosis is free. We pull the media, clean the ports, test the igniter and flame sensor, and write a price for the part that failed before replacing it. A new igniter is typically $90 to $150.

Manufactured homes and small fireplaces

A fireplace in a manufactured home should be a model its maker lists for manufactured housing, installed with the vent and air parts that came with it. We see these in parks and on lots across town. Swapping in a random insert or log set is not something to do casually, so we identify the unit and its listing first. Older units in parks sometimes have a missing or loose firestop where the pipe passes the ceiling, which we look for from inside and from the roof. If it is beyond repair, removal is an option; HomeGuide puts fireplace removal at $500 to $2,500.

Which air rules apply

This is the one town on our list where you need to know your county before you light a fire. Maricopa County's No Burn Day ordinance does not automatically reach the Pinal County side, where most of the city sits. Pinal County runs its own air-quality program; check its rules before burning wood. If your home is in the small Maricopa County part of the city, the county's No Burn Days and its May-to-September recreational fire ban apply.

Where we work in Apache Junction

Along the Apache Trail (State Route 88) · East side near Superstition Mountain · Goldfield Ghost Town area · El Dorado Mobile Estates area on the Maricopa County side · Gold Canyon (nearby)