electric fireplaces pros and cons image
momathomew
What are the pros and cons of EACH? We are moving into a house that has an older gas fireplace. Our inspector says he personally likes wood and we should convert it back. My husband also likes wood and thinks the point of a fireplace is to save on gas/electric bills. I agree with that, but I'd like to know the good and the bad about both gas and wood.
Thanks
Answer
I have a wood burning fireplace. My original thoughts were that I would go with wood burning because I wanted to use it to save money rather than lose money due to gas. The place that built my house put in a radiant wood burning fireplace. I've found out a few things since then. I'll list some of the options regarding fireplaces and pro's/cons.
Radiant Woodburning:
- Pros: best as far as appearance - real fire and easily visible
- Cons: lets cold air in during winter when not in use and can make the room smell a little, have some mess to clean up when you bring in the logs, can be a little hard to start, doesn't heat the room well
Woodburning with Blower:
- Pros: best for saving money if you have firewood available and does a great job of heating the room
- Cons: can't see the fire as well, it's encased by a metal door with glass in it due to the blower
Radiant Gas:
- Pros: easy to start, easy to see, no firewood mess, no smell, easy to view
- Cons: not real wood, expensive to heat with, doesn't heat the room well
Ventless Gas:
- Pros: very easy to start (just flick a switch), no firewood mess, no smell, very good at heating room, easy to view
- Cons: somewhat expensive to heat with but much more efficient than a radiant fireplace, glass door isn't meant to be opened often
If it was me, I'd either go with a wood fireplace that has a blower or a ventless gas fireplace.
Oh yeah, a few little notes if you get a wood fireplace, especially a radiant one. After you open the chimney flu and before you get ready to start the fire in the fireplace, I recommend opening an exterior door or window, especially if you have a well insulated home. If you don't the difference in air pressure between outside and inside your house can draw smoke into the room even with the flu vent open. Keep the window or door open until the fire gets going. After the heat from the starts going up the chimney and creates an air draft up the chimney then you can close the door or window without the worry of smoke filling the room. Also, it's good to leave a few ashes in the fireplace. The ashes are what hold the heat. And lastly, make sure to leave air void under your logs and some in between them. The air void allows oxygen to get to the fire when you are starting it and allows the fire to start easier.
I have a wood burning fireplace. My original thoughts were that I would go with wood burning because I wanted to use it to save money rather than lose money due to gas. The place that built my house put in a radiant wood burning fireplace. I've found out a few things since then. I'll list some of the options regarding fireplaces and pro's/cons.
Radiant Woodburning:
- Pros: best as far as appearance - real fire and easily visible
- Cons: lets cold air in during winter when not in use and can make the room smell a little, have some mess to clean up when you bring in the logs, can be a little hard to start, doesn't heat the room well
Woodburning with Blower:
- Pros: best for saving money if you have firewood available and does a great job of heating the room
- Cons: can't see the fire as well, it's encased by a metal door with glass in it due to the blower
Radiant Gas:
- Pros: easy to start, easy to see, no firewood mess, no smell, easy to view
- Cons: not real wood, expensive to heat with, doesn't heat the room well
Ventless Gas:
- Pros: very easy to start (just flick a switch), no firewood mess, no smell, very good at heating room, easy to view
- Cons: somewhat expensive to heat with but much more efficient than a radiant fireplace, glass door isn't meant to be opened often
If it was me, I'd either go with a wood fireplace that has a blower or a ventless gas fireplace.
Oh yeah, a few little notes if you get a wood fireplace, especially a radiant one. After you open the chimney flu and before you get ready to start the fire in the fireplace, I recommend opening an exterior door or window, especially if you have a well insulated home. If you don't the difference in air pressure between outside and inside your house can draw smoke into the room even with the flu vent open. Keep the window or door open until the fire gets going. After the heat from the starts going up the chimney and creates an air draft up the chimney then you can close the door or window without the worry of smoke filling the room. Also, it's good to leave a few ashes in the fireplace. The ashes are what hold the heat. And lastly, make sure to leave air void under your logs and some in between them. The air void allows oxygen to get to the fire when you are starting it and allows the fire to start easier.
Is an electric fireplace more efficient than a gas fireplace?
Maddogmc
I'm asking those who've experienced both.
A gas fireplace requires an outside vent through which toxic fumes escape, however you also lose a lot of heat through that same vent. And when your fireplace is off, cold air comes in through the vent
An electric fireplace does not require a vent, therefore you retain 100% of the heat.
Any more pros and cons? How about costs? I ran my gas fireplace for one week this month (at night), and my gas bill jumped by $30. Would running an electric fireplace at night for one week cost $30 of electricity?
Most electric fireplaces heat up to 400 sq. ft, so that's what I'm referring to. They sell at Canadian Tire for $199 and up depending on the detail work of the attached mantle. Frankly I'd rather just rip out my gas insert and replace it with an electric insert... but electric inserts are much smaller, so there'd be some re-framing and tiling work to do as well... but anyway, that's another story.
Answer
i can't give the exact number as i have no idea what one you are looking at and how much you intend to run it, but if you run it the same amount of the gas it will be cheaper
i can't give the exact number as i have no idea what one you are looking at and how much you intend to run it, but if you run it the same amount of the gas it will be cheaper
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Title Post: Wood vs. gas fireplaces...?
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Thank FOr Coming TO My Blog
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