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

Checked Sep 2026·Laws as cited·All 3 records checked Sep 2026

Public recordSC LAW

For consumer remedies, home-sale rules and carbon monoxide law, see South Carolina chimney & fireplace laws — know your rights. That page was verified Sep 2026.

Stove & insert installation: is a credential required in South Carolina?

#stove-installLICENSE

Credential: No hearth/solid-fuel category exists anywhere in the SC scheme — Reg. 106-1 lists 13 residential specialty classifications (plumbers, electricians, HVAC, siding, insulation, roofers, floor covering, masons, drywall, carpenters, stucco, painters/wallpaperers, solar) with no stove/hearth/chimney entry, and the HVAC specialty scope names gas-fired furnaces and space heaters, not solid fuel — wood/pellet stoves sit OUTSIDE the exam-gated HVAC specialty (the CT pattern: gas hearth exam-licensed, wood hearth not); the operative gate is the generalist layer: undertakings > $5,000 require the Residential Builder license (exam); masonry fireplace construction rides the Masons registration > $500 (no exam); permits under the 2021 SC Residential Code (2021 IRC, eff. 1/1/2023); 2024 SC codes 'undergoing the modification and adoption process', no effective date (the July row's 'modifications published in State Register 5/22/2026' is not confirmed on LLR's page)
Issuing body: SC Residential Builders Commission (LLR)
Statute: S.C. Code §§ 40-59-20, 40-59-30; S.C. Reg. 106-1, 106-2
Dollar threshold: $5,000 (Residential Builder license); $500 (specialty registrations)
Exam: y (RB exam; specialty registrations no exam)
Local overlay: y — § 40-59-240(C) municipal exam option
Confidence: high · checked 2026-09-25
Sources: GOVscstatehouse.gov/coderegs/Chapter%20106.pdfGOVscstatehouse.gov/code/t40c059.phpGOVllr.sc.gov/bcc/BCAdoption.aspx

Chimney flashing: is a credential required in South Carolina?

#chimney-flashingREGISTRATION

Credential: Residential Specialty Contractor — Roofers registration: Reg. 106-1 Roofers scope 'installation, alteration and repair of materials... that form a water tight, weather resistant surface for roofs and decks, including all accessories, flashing, valleys, gravel stops' — flashing named, so standalone chimney flashing/leak repair > $500 on a residence is registered-Roofer work; NO exam (Reg. 106-2 exam-licenses only HVAC, plumbers and electricians); specialty bond required when an undertaking for an individual owner exceeds $5,000 (§ 40-59-240; amount per Pass 4); commercial > $10,000 = CLB license with a roofing-capable subclassification (§ 40-11-30)
Issuing body: SC Residential Builders Commission (LLR)
Statute: S.C. Reg. 106-1, 106-2; S.C. Code §§ 40-59-20(7), 40-59-240; § 40-11-30
Dollar threshold: $500 (registration); $5,000 (bond trigger)
Exam: n
Local overlay: n
Confidence: high · checked 2026-09-25
Sources: GOVscstatehouse.gov/coderegs/Chapter%20106.pdfGOVllr.sc.gov/res/resspecialty.aspxGOVscstatehouse.gov/code/t40c059.php

Gas fireplace service: is a credential required in South Carolina?

#gas-fireplace-serviceLICENSE

Credential: Three-way split: RESIDENTIAL NG = RBC Residential Specialty LICENSE (exam; HVAC, plumbers and electricians are the only exam-licensed specialties, Reg. 106-2) as HVAC installer/repairer (Reg. 106-1 scope incl. 'gas fired furnaces and space heaters', excluding liquid propane gas tanks) or Plumber; LP ANYWHERE = LP Gas Board license (S.C. Code § 40-82-30: unlawful without a license to engage in 'the installation, servicing, repairing, adjusting, or connecting of appliances to liquefied petroleum gas systems'; Dealer + 'Installer of appliances and equipment' classes, § 40-82-20; exam or approved training, § 40-82-230); COMMERCIAL > $10,000 = CLB Mechanical license (Heating, Packaged Equipment and Plumbing subclassifications may install the necessary gas lines, § 40-11-410(5); threshold raised from $5,000 by 2023 Act No. 69, eff. 5/19/2023); MISMATCH: masonry = no-exam registration > $500 while the log set inside is gated by three separate exam regimes
Issuing body: SC LLR — Residential Builders Commission (residential specialties); Contractor's Licensing Board (commercial); LP Gas Board (LLR, admin support from Office of State Fire Marshal)
Statute: S.C. Code §§ 40-82-20, 40-82-30, 40-82-230; § 40-59-20(7); Reg. 106-1, 106-2; §§ 40-11-30, 40-11-410(5)
Dollar threshold: $500 residential specialty / $5,000 residential builder / over $10,000 commercial CLB; LP Gas Board license has NO dollar floor
Exam: y (RBC HVAC/plumber specialty exams; CLB qualifying-party exams; LP Gas Board exam or approved training)
Local overlay: y — § 40-59-240(C): counties/municipalities may require their own exam/license unless the contractor passed a commission-approved exam; MASC municipal Masters License recognized as exam substitute (not re-verified)
Confidence: high · checked 2026-09-25
Sources: GOVscstatehouse.gov/code/t40c082.phpGOVscstatehouse.gov/code/t40c059.phpGOVscstatehouse.gov/code/t40c011.phpGOVscstatehouse.gov/coderegs/Chapter%20106.pdfGOVllr.sc.gov/lp/licensure.aspx

What insurance does South Carolina require of contractors?

#insurance

Regime: registration >$500 / license >$5,000 residential (RBC); license >$10,000 commercial (CLB); LP Gas Board license at $0
Liability minimum: LP GAS BOARD licensees: $500,000 GL incl. contractor's and products liability from an SC-licensed company (§ 40-82-250) — the CARRIER certifies the COI to the Board via the Office of State Fire Marshal, and cancellation requires 30 days' REGISTERED-MAIL notice to the Board = the strongest state-verified insurance artifact in the South batch; CLB (general/mechanical): NONE (ch. 40-11 fetched — exam + financial statement only; the $100k GL on the CLB site belongs to ALARM businesses, Title 40 ch. 79 — do not conflate); RBC: NONE mandated (commission 'may consider' WC among application factors, § 40-59-220(B)(6))
Bond: RBC homeowner-protective bonds: Residential BUILDER $15,000 executed bond OR acceptable proof of financial responsibility (§ 40-59-220(C) — in lieu of the solvency showing, NOT in lieu of the exam); SPECIALTY contractors: surety bond required whenever a job for an owner exceeds $5,000 (§§ 40-59-220(D)/240(D)) — $10,000 licensed specialty (HVAC/plumber/electrician) / $5,000 registered specialty (masons etc.), per-license-year aggregate, 8-year claim window, benefits the Commission and any homeowner sustaining loss (official bond form); CLB: optional bond = required net worth amount in lieu of financial statement (§ 40-11-262; mechanical net-worth ladder $7,000–$300,000 by group)
Guaranty fund: NONE — no recovery/guaranty fund anywhere in ch. 40-11 or 40-59 (both fetched in full); the RBC bonds are the functional substitute; plus § 40-59-30(B): unlicensed contractors get no mechanic's lien and cannot sue on the contract
Workers' comp threshold: 4+ employees — exempt if 'regularly employed in service less than four employees in the same business' OR total annual payroll under $3,000 in the previous calendar year (§ 42-1-360(2)); sole-prop/partner election + officer-exemption artifacts UNVERIFIED
How to verify: insurance: active LP Gas Board license = state-verified $500k GL (scope it to LP work in any badge wording); RBC/CLB status is NOT an insurance proxy — bond status is the checkable instrument; license lookups llr.sc.gov (AUTOMATED); WC: SC WCC Verify Coverage (wcc.sc.gov/insurance-carriers-third-party-administrators/verify-coverage) + NCCI POC
Confidence: high · checked 2026-07-10
Sources: GOVscstatehouse.gov/code/t40c082.phpGOVscstatehouse.gov/code/t40c059.phpGOVscstatehouse.gov/code/t40c011.phpGOVllr.sc.gov/res/PDF/LICENSE%20BOND.pdfREFlaw.justia.com/codes/south-carolina/2024/t…

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Before anyone goes on your roof

What should you ask a chimney company in South Carolina?

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.