Recall of the Week: Remote control kits for electric fireplaces and stoves

About 700,000 remote control kits for electric fireplaces and stoves are being recalled, reports the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Imported by Dimplex North America, of Ontario, Canada, the remote control kit’s plug-in wall unit can overheat, posing a fire and burn hazard to consumers.

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, the commission reports.

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.

Made in China, the remote control kits were sold in 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. The recall includes remote control kits later replaced under warranty.

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, the commission advises. Consumers can continue to operate the fireplace or stove by plugging the fireplace or stove's electrical cord directly into an electrical outlet.

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.

For details on other recalls, see www.recalls.gov.