Alabama: who needs a license to work on your chimney or fireplace?

Checked Jul 2026·Laws as cited·Not in the Sep 2026 verification pass

Public recordAL LAW

For consumer remedies, home-sale rules and carbon monoxide law, see Alabama chimney & fireplace laws — know your rights. That page was verified more recently than this matrix.

Stove & insert installation: is a credential required in Alabama?

#stove-installNONE

Credential: Nothing at or below $10,000 — the HBLB home-builder license attaches to residential construction/improvement >$10,000 (per rights research/Pass 1) and no roofers-style carve-down exists for stoves; the HACR license (Ala. Code § 34-31) covers heating/air-conditioning/refrigeration systems that condition air — no solid-fuel capture found (trade-scope inference, no board guidance located); PGFB (NG) and LP-Gas Board lanes are gas-only; CODE MIGRATION FLAG: the 2015-IRC-based Alabama Residential Building Code (eff. 10/1/2016) remains the state baseline; Act 2024-443 transferred residential-code adoption from ADECA to the HBLB (Advisory Council seated 2/13/2025, code due to the Board by 10/1/2025 — whether a new edition was adopted is UNVERIFIED as of 7/2026); enforcement only where local permit programs exist
Issuing body: AL Home Builders Licensure Board (>$10k); local building departments
Statute: Ala. Code § 34-14A-5 (threshold, per rights research); Ala. Code § 34-31 (HACR); Act 2024-443
Dollar threshold: $10,000 (HBLB layer)
Exam: n
Local overlay: y — Birmingham/Huntsville/Mobile permit programs; rural areas often permit-free
Confidence: medium · checked 2026-07-22
Sources: GOVhblb.alabama.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/…GOVadeca.alabama.gov/wp-content/uploads/Alabama-…REFbcapcodes.org/code-status/state/alabama

Chimney flashing: is a credential required in Alabama?

#chimney-flashingLICENSE

Credential: HBLB Roofers license — Act 2021-296 (eff. 1/1/2022) put ALL residential roofing under the Home Builders Licensure Board at a carved-DOWN threshold: >$2,500 (vs $10,000 for general home building); the definition captures flashing/leak repair squarely — a residential roofer 'installs products or repairs surfaces on the external upper covering of a residence or structure that seals, waterproofs, or weatherproofs' (§ 34-14A-2); $10,000 roofers-only bond with the Board as obligee (per Pass 4) BUT roofers-license claims are EXCLUDED from the Homeowners' Recovery Fund (§ 34-14A-15, per Pass 4) — the license exists, the fund behind it doesn't (bond is the only homeowner instrument); unlimited home-builder licensees may roof without the separate roofers license, limited licensees may not
Issuing body: AL Home Builders Licensure Board
Statute: Ala. Code §§ 34-14A-2, 34-14A-5 (roofers provisions added by Act 2021-296)
Dollar threshold: $2,500
Exam: n (no roofers trade exam found — UNVERIFIED)
Local overlay: n
Confidence: high · checked 2026-07-22
Sources: GOVhblb.alabama.gov/faq/%C2%A7-34-14a-2-definit…REFlgwmlaw.com/alabama-legislature-expands…GOVhblb.alabama.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/…

Gas fireplace service: is a credential required in Alabama?

#gas-fireplace-serviceLICENSE

Credential: Fuel type decides the regulator — total statutory LP/NG split: NG = Plumbers and Gas Fitters Examining Board Master/Journeyman GAS FITTER certification (exam, statewide, $0 floor) — 'gas fitting' is defined NATURAL-GAS-ONLY: pipes/fittings/APPLIANCES for supplying natural gas from point of delivery incl. piping before the combustion zone and venting of flue gases (§ 34-37-1(4)); scope nuance: piping from shutoff valve to appliance is NOT gas pipe fitting except gas water heaters (720-X rules — appliance-hookup gray zone, medium); NO homeowner exemption for gas (the § 34-37-15 owner exemption says PLUMBING only — asymmetry finding); HACR carve-out covers gas-fired AIR heating/cooling appliances excluding piping — does not rescue hearth work; LP = Alabama LP-Gas Board permits (§ 9-17-105): Permit A full retail / B-1 branch / PERMIT C = installing/servicing/repairing LP piping and appliances downstream of tank outlet valves only — the propane gas-log installer class; board competency exams for employees since 2017; local testing of LP servicemen PREEMPTED (§ 9-17-105(g)); MISMATCH: chimney work <=$10,000 needs no state license (HBLB) while a $400 gas-log hookup is licensed from dollar one on either fuel
Issuing body: AL Plumbers and Gas Fitters Examining Board (NG); Alabama LP-Gas Board (LP); HBLB (contracting layer >$10k)
Statute: Ala. Code § 34-37-1(1),(2),(4),(5),(7), § 34-37-6 (certification/exams), § 34-37-15 (exemptions); Ala. Code § 9-17-105 (LP permit classes, Title 9 ch. 17 art. 4)
Dollar threshold: none (both gas regimes $0); $10,000 (HBLB residential layer for the chimney side)
Exam: y (journeyman/master gas fitter exams; LP employee competency exams)
Local overlay: n for licensing (statewide certification + LP preemption); city permit/inspection regimes remain (Birmingham/Huntsville mechanics UNVERIFIED)
Confidence: high · checked 2026-07-10
Sources: REFlaw.justia.com/codes/alabama/title-34/chap…REFlaw.justia.com/codes/alabama/title-34/chap…REFlaw.justia.com/codes/alabama/title-9/chapt…GOVhblb.alabama.gov/exemptions

Gas log installation: is a credential required in Alabama?

#gas-log-installLICENSE

Credential: LP gas logs = LP-Gas Board Permit C (install/service/repair/adjust LP piping and appliances downstream of the tank outlet valve only — no container sales; separate permit per business location) or Permit A/B-1 dealer; NG gas logs = PGFB-certified gas fitter (appliances expressly in the § 34-37-1(4) definition); distinct cheaper LP lane tracked separately
Issuing body: Alabama LP-Gas Board (LP); AL Plumbers and Gas Fitters Examining Board (NG)
Statute: Ala. Code § 9-17-105(a) (Permit C); § 34-37-1(4)
Dollar threshold: none
Exam: y (LP employee competency exams; gas fitter exams)
Local overlay: n
Confidence: high · checked 2026-07-10
Sources: REFlaw.justia.com/codes/alabama/title-9/chapt…

What insurance does Alabama require of contractors?

#insurance

Regime: license (HBLB residential >$10,000; PGFB gas fitters $0; LP-Gas Board permits $0)
Liability minimum: LP-GAS BOARD permits (§ 9-17-105(d)): CGL $1,000,000 each occurrence / $1,000,000 personal & advertising / $1,000,000 general aggregate / $1,000,000 products-completed ops + commercial auto $1,000,000 CSL ($5,000,000 CSL for cargo vehicles >=3,500 gal) — proof only on an AL DOI-approved form; NO PROOF = new permits denied AND existing permits AUTOMATICALLY CANCELLED (6-month reinstatement window) — the hardest insurance-enforcement teeth in the South batch (carrier notice-days duty UNVERIFIED); PGFB gas fitters: NO GL requirement (ch. 34-37 reviewed); HBLB: NO GL requirement — financial responsibility via credit report/financial statement instead (medium)
Bond: PGFB: the old $2,000 master plumber/gas fitter bond (§ 34-37-13) was REPEALED by Act 2015-496 eff. 9/1/2015 — exam-prep sites still citing it are stale (DEBUNK); HBLB: roofers only — $10,000 bond with the BOARD as obligee (financial-responsibility substitute, not a per-homeowner instrument); LP: no bond confirmed (statute title mentions a Personal Bond Fund; operative text is insurance — UNVERIFIED remainder)
Guaranty fund: HBLB Homeowners' Recovery Fund (§ 34-14A-15): $30,000 per single transaction / $90,000 aggregate per licensee; trigger = valid court judgment (consent judgments EXCLUDED) vs a LICENSED residential home builder; actual economic damages only (no pain/suffering, interest, fees); claim letter to Board by certified mail within 10 days of filing suit; complaint within 6 years of substantial completion; ROOFERS-license claims EXCLUDED; homeowners who used the DIY exemption forfeit access; the separate LP-Gas Recovery Fund was ABOLISHED (§ 9-17-105(c))
Workers' comp threshold: fewer than 5 employees = exempt (§ 25-5-50); officers/LLC members COUNT toward the five; officer opt-out via AL DOL Form WC-15; EXCEPTION: employers constructing new single-family detached dwellings need coverage regardless of headcount (chimney repair on existing homes is NOT that — the 5-employee rule governs the trade); small employers may voluntarily elect in
How to verify: insurance: active LP permit = state-verified $1M (fuel-scoped wording); PGFB/HBLB status is NOT an insurance proxy — carrier-direct COI required for any insured badge; license lookups hblb.alabama.gov + pgfb.alabama.gov + lpgb.alabama.gov (AUTOMATED); WC: NCCI coverage verification ewccv.com/cvs + AL DOL WC division (labor.alabama.gov/wc/)
Confidence: high (LP/fund/bond-repeal); medium-high (WC exception wording) · checked 2026-07-10
Sources: REFlaw.justia.com/codes/alabama/title-9/chapt…REFlaw.justia.com/codes/alabama/title-34/chap…GOVhblb.alabama.gov/consumers/recovery-fundREFlaw.justia.com/codes/alabama/title-25/chap…GOVlabor.alabama.gov/wc/wc_corp_off_exmp_wc15.pdf

Download the full licensing matrix (CSV) · All states

Before anyone goes on your roof

What should you ask a chimney company in Alabama?

Is your company a member of the National Chimney Sweep Guild (NCSG)?
Does the technician coming to my home hold an individual NCSG certification, and which one?
Does the technician hold a National Fireplace Institute (NFI) certification — and for which fuel: wood, gas, or pellet?
What other certifications does the technician hold (for example, CSIA), and can I check them on the issuer's own roster?
What state or local license or registration covers this work here, and what is the number?
Will you send a certificate of insurance, dated and naming your company, before work starts?
Which NFPA 211 inspection level — Level 1, 2, or 3 — are you performing, and why that level?
Will you show me what you found — photos or video of the flue — in writing?

We take no fee from any certification body, guild, or contractor, and are not paid to mention anyone named.