Hello, I would greatly appreciate any opinions. Today I entered my rental home and noticed for the first time a heavy buildup of soot over the fireplace. The polyurethane finish is also damaged.
It is a gas fireplace that was installed prior to my purchasing the house. I'm pretty sure there was no evidence of soot prior to the last week. I saw some ashes in there consistent with burning paper but it was very minimal. The logs had minimal suit on them. Is it even possible for a gas fireplace to cause the damage in these pictures? I need to decide whether to charge the tenants for inappropriate use and not informing me of a problem.
![Damage to mantle. Are tenants to blame? Damage to mantle. Are tenants to blame?](https://www.hearth.com/talk/data/attachments/225/225885-f3ceba42344cfddb127f974aa2181899.jpg)
![Damage to mantle. Are tenants to blame? Damage to mantle. Are tenants to blame?](https://www.hearth.com/talk/data/attachments/225/225886-d33c2a37860f8044473d751aa2f41bc5.jpg)
![Damage to mantle. Are tenants to blame? Damage to mantle. Are tenants to blame?](https://www.hearth.com/talk/data/attachments/225/225887-c765aac339b0f60284142dc715cd231c.jpg)
It is a gas fireplace that was installed prior to my purchasing the house. I'm pretty sure there was no evidence of soot prior to the last week. I saw some ashes in there consistent with burning paper but it was very minimal. The logs had minimal suit on them. Is it even possible for a gas fireplace to cause the damage in these pictures? I need to decide whether to charge the tenants for inappropriate use and not informing me of a problem.
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