Fireplace Manufacturers Inc Outdoor Fireplace User Manual

12
Important Pre-installation Information
Overview
YouwillndthattheGrandMeridianFireplaceisdesignedfor
completeassemblyatyourconstructionsitewithallnecessary
itemsdeliveredconsistingofinterlockingprecastparts,50lbs.
ofmortarandrebar.
Thepartsofthereplacearemadeofincrediblystrongblendof
specialtycementandalightweightaggregate.
Thedesignofthereplacecallsfortheinstallationofarefractory
rebrickliner.This should be a minimum of 1-1/8”thick.The
liner will be applied within the walls of the rebox. Modular
rebrickpanelsarealsoavailablefromFMIPRODUCTS,LLC.
Additional Materials Required:
1)Ready-Mixconcrete-2cu.ft.
SURFACE CRACKS-TheGrandMeridianFIREPLACESare
manufactured using high quality materials. During the drying
process,surfacecrackingmayoccur.Thesesmallcracks(under
1/16”willnotaffectthereplacesafetyorperformance).During
the assembly process,ll surface cracks with thin-set mortar
andbrushwhendryingforasmoothsurfacenish.
Leveling and Aligning Components:
ItisimportanttoassembleallVent-Freereplacecomponents
ush, level and square. Since it is not intended that mortar
beusedtolay a mortarjoint of anymeasurable thickness as
istypical when laying brick or concrete block, adjustmentsin
componentheightandlevelalignmentsareaccomplishedwith
theuseofsmallshims.Theseshimscanbetappedintoplaceto
levelandaligncomponents.OncetheMortarisset,theshims
mustberemovedcompletely.
Besuretore-groutanyandallgapswhereshimshavebeen
inserted and then removed or where contact surfaces have
beenseparatedbyshimleveling.
Field Assembly Procedures
1) Mixingthemortar–Youwillrequirea50lb.bucketofmortar
whichwillbemorethanenoughtoadequatelyafxallthe
replacecomponents,onetothenext.Themortarispremixed
anddryandistobeusedtoadhereallthereplacecomponents.
Besuretousecleanwaterandworkitupintoamixturethat
ispastybutnotlumpy.Ifitistoothin,thecomponentswill
notadhere.Sometrialanderrormaybenecessary.Youwill
wanttoapplythemixturewithastandardgroutbag.
2) Moisten all surfaces which will have grout applied prior
to assembly. This will minimize shrinkage and cracks
developinginthejointareas.Bestwaytoaccomplishthisis
withabucketofwaterandalargesponge.Dipspongeinto
waterandapplyaliberalamountofwatertothegroutjoint
surfaceseveralminutesbeforethepartistobeassembled.
Thewaterwillabsorbintothesurfaceallowingthegroutto
properlycure.
3)Assembly of the Components – Onceyou have found the
properconsistencyofthemixture,loaditintothegroutbag
andthenplacethecomponentstogetherapplyingthemixture
directlytothecomponentswheretheycometogether.Asa
rule,youcangurethatyoushouldlaydownabout½”(one-
halfinch)ofathreadofmortar.Thelineofmortarshouldbe
approximately½”(one-halfinch)awayfromalltheedgesof
eachseparatecomponent.
 Themortarhasaconsiderableamountofholdingpowerso
donotoverloadthecomponentswithtoomuchmortar.
4)You will notice that some mortar will “ooze out” when you
placethenextcomponentontopofornexttothecomponent
youpreviouslyplace.Thisistobeexpected–itmeansthe
two pieces have properly bonded -- and you will want to
swipethe excess awaywitha trowel.It isnever intended
thatthesurfaces ofthecomponentsare tobecompletely
coveredwithmortar.
5) Donotapplythemortarinthickbandsevenifthecomponent
youareworkingwithislargerthantherest.Youwillwantto
apply“stripes”ofmortarinthesesituations.
6) Making Sure Components Are Level – It is extremely
important that you pay careful attention to how you are
assembling the replace. Since every component builds
on thenext, itis critical, thatfrom thebeginning, you are
checkingthatthecomponentsarettingtogethertobelevel
andush.Ifyouhavetomakeanykindofanadjustment,
donottrytodoit“byloadinganopening”withmortar.That
iscompletelyunacceptable,resultinginareplacethatwill
notbeplumborlevel.Whatyouareadvisedtodoismake
useofshims.Youwillndthesesuppliedwiththereplace
andyoucannudgetheminbetweenopeningstoachieve
theprecisionyouneedinmakingcomponentadjustments.
7) Onceyouhaveremovedtheshims,youwillwanttocover
anygapsthatmayhaveresultedwiththegrout.
Warning:Allsurfaceswheregroutisappliedmust
have water sponged on several minutes prior to
assembly.Thiswillminimizecrackingofgroutjoint
andprovidemaximumstrength.