Rhode Island: 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 recordRI LAW
For consumer remedies, home-sale rules and carbon monoxide law, see Rhode Island chimney & fireplace laws — know your rights. That page was verified more recently than this matrix.
Stove & insert installation: is a credential required in Rhode Island?
#stove-installLICENSE- Credential
- Decorative Heating Appliances Limited II license (DLT trade license) — scope verbatim: 'installation of: gas fired logs; gas, pellet, or wood decorative appliances and their related flue connections and terminations; replacement flue liners for residential installations' and 'Municipal permits for installations shall be issued to this licensee'; PREREQUISITE IS A PRIVATE HEARTH CERT: applicant 'must hold a current certification from the National Chimney Sweep Guild or the National Fireplace Institute' + 2 yrs notarized experience — NCSG/NFI WRITTEN INTO RULE (RI joins NJ's NFI-in-law pattern for solid fuel; second state in project); fuel piping excluded (pipefitter licenses); whether a primary-heat freestanding stove counts as a 'decorative appliance' and whether this license is the exclusive path vs CRLB registration = UNVERIFIED enforcement practice; central solid-fuel hydronics fall to Pipefitter licenses; SBC-2 mechanical permit required (only 'portable heating appliance' exempt, R105.2); CODE CORRECTION: RISBC-2 = 2021 IRC eff. 12/1/2025 — the prior version (eff. 2/1/2022) was 2018-IRC-based, so ubiquitous '2021 IRC eff. 2022' citations are wrong
- Issuing body
- RI Dept. of Labor & Training — Division of Professional Regulation (Bureau of Pipefitters et al.); municipal building officials (permits)
- Statute
- 260-RICR-30-15-2.22(I) (under R.I. Gen. Laws ch. 28-27, reported); RISBC-2 510-RICR-00-00-2 § 2.2(A)
- Dollar threshold
- none (CRLB side has $500 casual-work exemption)
- Exam
- n state exam — NCSG or NFI certification required by rule instead
- Local overlay
- n
- Confidence
- high (rule text); medium (mandatory reach over all solid-fuel installs) · checked 2026-07-10
- Sources
Chimney flashing: is a credential required in Rhode Island?
#chimney-flashingLICENSE (COMMERCIAL ONLY); REGISTRATION (RESIDENTIAL)- Credential
- Commercial Roofing license is COMMERCIAL-ONLY by definition — § 5-73-1(3): 'roofing' = work on the roof of any NONRESIDENTIAL structure 'and shall specifically include sealing, water proofing, weatherproofing, related sheet-metal work'; § 5-73-1(2): nonresidential 'shall not include any residential structures consisting of four (4) dwelling units or less' — so chimney flashing/leak repair on a HOUSE needs only CRLB contractor registration (no exam; pre-registration education course; $500 casual-work exemption § 5-65-2(a)(4)) while the same flashing job on a commercial building needs the exam-licensed commercial roofer (PSI exam, $2,000,000/occurrence insurance, OSHA-10 for field personnel, 12 hr CE; shingles-only applicators carved out § 5-73-3(b)); no residential roofing license exists (CRLB license list: commercial roofing, home inspector, underground utility, well/pump only)
- Issuing body
- RI Contractors' Registration and Licensing Board (CRLB)
- Statute
- R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 5-73-1, 5-73-3 (fetched); ch. 5-65 (registration); 440-RICR-10-00-4
- Dollar threshold
- $500 (casual-work registration exemption); none on the commercial license
- Exam
- y (commercial license); n (residential registration)
- Local overlay
- n
- Confidence
- high · checked 2026-07-10
- Sources
Gas fireplace service: is a credential required in Rhode Island?
#gas-fireplace-serviceLICENSE- Credential
- Split by fuel: natural gas piping/appliance work = Pipefitter licenses (Master/Journeyperson I & II) or Plumber (Master/Journeyman); LP appliance work incl. residential gas stoves, GAS LOGS, grills, space heaters = 'PJF/Propane Gas Service' Master II / Journeyperson II (Limited) licenses (limited to propane burners <=500,000 BTU residential/commercial), installations performed under a Pipefitter Master — explicit LP vs NG split across license classes
- Issuing body
- RI Dept. of Labor & Training — Bureau of Pipefitters, Refrigeration Technicians, Sprinklerfitters, Sheet Metal Workers and Oil Heat Contractors; Board of Examiners of Plumbers (plumbing side)
- Statute
- 260-RICR-30-15-2 (DLT trade rules; PJF/Propane classes); mechanical trades statute R.I. Gen. Laws ch. 28-27 (reported, not primary-fetched); plumbers ch. 5-20
- Dollar threshold
- none
- Exam
- y (exam + 220 hr minimum combined classroom/laboratory training for PJF Journeyperson II)
- Local overlay
- n
- Confidence
- high (license classes); medium (statute cite) · checked 2026-07-09
- Sources
Gas log installation: is a credential required in Rhode Island?
#gas-log-installLICENSE- Credential
- PJF/Propane Gas Service license scope EXPRESSLY includes 'gas logs' (residential gas stoves, gas logs, gas grills, space heaters) for propane; NG log sets fall to pipefitter/plumber licenses; distinct LP lane tracked separately
- Issuing body
- RI Dept. of Labor & Training — Bureau of Pipefitters et al.
- Statute
- 260-RICR-30-15-2
- Dollar threshold
- none
- Exam
- y
- Local overlay
- n
- Confidence
- high · checked 2026-07-09
- Sources
What insurance does Rhode Island require of contractors?
#insurance- Regime
- registration (CRLB contractor registration, R.I. Gen. Laws ch. 5-65, masons included) + DLT trade licenses (gas)
- Liability minimum
- $500,000 combined single limit public liability + property damage covering the contractor's work, in effect throughout the registration period (R.I. Gen. Laws § 5-65-7(a)); WC also required as a registration condition (§ 5-65-7(b))
- Bond
- none for general contractor registration (§ 5-65-7 requires insurance + WC only; GC-registration bond claims not supported — specialty licenses like underground utility differ)
- Guaranty fund
- none — no pooled guaranty/recovery fund; CRLB runs a claims/hearing process (claims within 1 year, monetary restitution orders enforced via registration action) but no fund pays when the contractor can't
- Workers' comp threshold
- 1 employee triggers (all employees incl. part-time); sole proprietors/partners exempt for themselves AND (unusual) CANNOT elect to buy WC for themselves; corporate officers and LLC members MUST be covered; independent contractors file annual Notice of Designation DWC-11-IC — checkable artifact
- How to verify
- insurance: STATE-VERIFIED — 'satisfactory evidence to the board at the time of registration AND renewal'; COI must list policy number and the Board as certificate holder; min 6 months coverage from application date; failure to maintain INVALIDATES registration; registration lookup crb.ri.gov; WC public lookup: RI DLT online coverage verification tool
- Confidence
- high (insurance + WC); medium-high (no-bond, no-fund absences) · checked 2026-07-09
- Sources
Download the full licensing matrix (CSV) · All states
Before anyone goes on your roof
What should you ask a chimney company in Rhode Island?
- 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.