Remote Control Kits for Electric Fireplaces and Stoves Recalled by Dimplex North America Due to Fire and Burn Hazards

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.

Name of Product: Remote Control Kits for Electric Fireplaces and Stoves

Units: About 700,000

Importer: Dimplex North America, of Ontario, Canada

Hazard: The plug-in wall unit can overheat, posing a fire and burn hazard to consumers.

Incidents/Injuries: Dimplex has received about 5,000 reports of the plug-in wall units overheating including 19 reports of damage beyond the remote control and one report of a house fire in Columbus, Ohio that resulted in considerable property damage.

Description: The recalled remote control kits are used with Dimplex, Electraflame, Symphony, Optiflame, Electralog and Charmglow brand electric fireplaces, stoves and fireplace inserts. They include a black or dark gray hand-held remote control and also a black or dark gray wall unit that plugs into an electrical wall outlet. Recalled model numbers include 47-1001, 47-1010-R and APT-1315. The model number is printed on either the plug-in unit or the hand-held remote control. The fireplace or stove's brand name is printed on both units.

Sold at: Mass merchandise, home improvement, specialty fireplace and furniture retailers from January 1998 through December 2008 for between $200 and $1,500 for the fireplaces and stoves. This recall includes remote control kits subsequently replaced under warranty.

Manufactured in: China

Remedy: Consumers should immediately stop using the remote control kits, unplug the power cord from the remote control kit's wall unit, remove the wall unit from the electrical outlet and contact Dimplex for a free replacement kit. Consumers can continue to operate the fireplace or stove by plugging the fireplace or stove's electrical cord directly into an electrical outlet.

Consumer Contact: For additional information, contact Dimplex North America toll-free at (866) 673-9880 anytime, or visit the firm's Web site at www.recall.dimplex.com

CPSC is still interested in receiving incident or injury reports that are either directly related to this product recall or involve a different hazard with the same product. Please tell us about it by visiting https://www.cpsc.gov/cgibin/incident.aspx

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risks of serious injury or death from thousands of types of consumer products under the agency's jurisdiction. The CPSC is committed to protecting consumers and families from products that pose a fire, electrical, chemical, or mechanical hazard. The CPSC's work to ensure the safety of consumer products - such as toys, cribs, power tools, cigarette lighters, and household chemicals - contributed significantly to the decline in the rate of deaths and injuries associated with consumer products over the past 30 years.

To report a dangerous product or a product-related injury, call CPSC's Hotline at (800) 638-2772 or CPSC's teletypewriter at (301) 595-7054. To join a CPSC e-mail subscription list, please go to https://www.cpsc.gov/cpsclist.aspx. Consumers can obtain recall and general safety information by logging on to CPSC's Web site at http://www.cpsc.gov/.

submitted by: Lee County Emergency Services DFM Mike Tatum