Gas Ventless Fireplace

The very first advantage of going with a ventless fireplace that is fueled with gas it that you take wood out of the equation entirely. For many of us, we love the feel and the alternative heat source especially when the temperatures drop in the winter. But we dislike keeping cut wood on hand and carrying it around to be burnt in the fireplace. It expensive, it creates soot and it is a pain to always have to go outside for more wood. On top of that, the wood often pops or spits out embers so you always have to be worrying about safety.

Switching to gas is the answer for many people who don’t want to give up the value and the cozy feeling of operating a fireplace in the winter but they don't want to deal with all the "issues" that come with operating a wood fireplace. One option is to just replace the wood with a stream of gas from a pipe you have installed in the base of your firebox. The flames are steady and reliable. You can put in gas logs that do not burn up to give your fireplace a realistic look but all of that fuss and worry goes away.

The ventless approach takes the "civilizing" influence of gas fireplaces to the next level. With the standard gas adaptation of your fireplace, you still keep the chimney clean and able to take the gases and debris that might come out of the fire up the flue and into the night air above. While this assures that the air in the room where the fire is stays clean, it also requires that the chimney stay clean which means bringing in a chimneysweep every year. The biggest source of fireplace related home fires comes from build up of creosote in the chimney. So if you are going to let your fire vent up the chimney, you have to make sure it has been professionally cleaned and it is clear of bird nests or other obstructions that might ignite in the chimney creating a crisis for you.

The ventless fireplace uses gas as its source of fuel and it does not vent up the chimney at all. That means you can close the flue or even run a ventless fire in a fireplace that has been sealed off and it will work just fine. But the one aspect of a ventless gas set up for your fireplace is that it vents into the air of the room where you may be entertaining guests. This is both a major concern for this type of fireplace design and an area of focus for you to make sure the room is large enough and well vented so the emissions from the fire can be carried out of the room and fresh air carried in to keep the oxygen level up in the room.

This is a controversial approach to fireplace design that has been banned on some states because of the danger of venting of the fire into the room where you and your family and guests may be spending the evening. So as cool as this approach is, be sure it is legal in your state and that your contractor knows how to assure the room where the fireplace will reside is property vented and large enough to support the fireplace and the people who will be enjoying it.