Unless you are looking to build a new house, planning the construction of a fireplace can be very expensive. Well, not any more now, if you consider opting for a gas fireplace. If you can envision a mess free fireplace with modern looks to complete that special corner of your house, we at FireSide Hearth & Home guarantee that it will become a reality.
Options galore
Over the past decade, American consumers have come to realize the benefits of opting for gas fires over the traditional wooden fires. For one, even if you do not have a pre-built fireplace, you can still have a fire roaring in just a matter of hours. And talking about the style, these are just as gorgeous as, if not better than your traditional hearths. If you don’t want it to occupy a huge corner of the room then you can try the portable gas stoves and you can have all the comforts of a fireplace without the hassles of a permanent solution.
Changes to expect
Let’s talk about the advantages of a gas fire. Primarily, in case you have a traditional fireplace with a chimney in your home, most of the heat escapes through the flue and only about 10% is actually retained. While this might not be much of a concern in places where there is an abundance of wood available, maintaining a pile of fire ready dry logs is not an easy task. That is where gas logs come in.
These work on the principle of gas circulation and “burn†artificial logs or crystals. Gas systems come primarily in 2 categories:
- Vented
These are connected to the chimneys like normal fireplaces, which ensure that they work on the same principle.
- Vent Free
These systems, with a statistic of about 95% heat retention, offer a clean burn of natural or compressed gases and do not need a chimney to be connected. However, these also come with some disadvantages. If you opt for gas systems, you will need a working gas line to your home. In case of the vent free option, you should make sure that your home has a good air supply since mild suffocation might be a problem to those with respiratory problems like asthma. All of the gas systems usually come equipped with carbon monoxide sensors which shut off the system if the CO level rises above a certain threshold; so the chances of CO poisoning are eliminated.
Transforming your fireplace
Already got an old and dilapidated fireplace lying there which simply does not provide enough warmth anymore? You could try a gas insert. These are metal boxes that leave your chimney partially or fully blocked, leading to higher heat trapping capability with the added advantage of no ash remaining; all from the comfort of your couch with a remote for controlling the flame. After all, most consumers now wish to come into a cold room, switch on the fire and switch it off while leaving.
Still confused? According to the Health, Patio and Barbecue Association of US, out of the 1 million units shipped in 2010 alone, over 650,000 were gas fueled units. Decide to join the majority today and usher in a new level of warmth into your home.
