When winter is on its way, then you’ve got to be prepared. If you’ve got a gas fireplace, then it might interest you to know that most folks aren’t using theirs to its full potential. So today, we will address this issue by telling you how to get more heat from your gas fireplace.
With a few clever tips and tricks, you’ll be well-prepared, and for once, winter should lose just a little bit of its bite! So let’s talk about how to get more heat from your gas fireplace this winter.
8 Ways To Get More Heat From Gas Fireplace
1. A Chimney Damper Puts a ‘Lid’ on your Chimney
When it comes to home heating, it’s not just about how much heat your gas fireplace can produce. It’s also important how much heat you can retain! This is where a chimney damper comes in. Essentially a ‘lid’ for your chimney, a chimney damper lets you close your chimney up when you are done using your fireplace and helps to keep that sweet, sweet heat inside.
While you cannot use them with vent-free or vented gas logs, it’s a good idea to get one if you are not using one and don’t have a chimney damper yet. One of the biggest problems with keeping your home warm and toasty is that heat has several ways of escaping your house.
By closing off your chimney with a chimney vent, your heat has one less place to escape, and you’ll notice the difference.
2. Consider Using Vent-Free Gas Logs
Vent-free gas logs are another option for maximizing your heat, but they do come with a few caveats. The ‘vent-free description comes from how these logs function. Instead of drawing in some air from outside, these logs are designed to circulate the heated air in your house all by their lonesome.
As a safety feature, these logs include oxygen sensors to help ensure that their use never compromises oxygen levels in the house. As far as their performance, they make a noticeable difference in heating your house.
Now, that said, they do have a few caveats. So here are some considerations that you should be aware of when using vent-free logs:
You should use them in closed spaces.
They produce moisture during regular operation, which may fog up some of your windows. Of course, you can crack a window to help balance this out or even use a humidifier, but this is something to expect and consider.
- They are designed to work with specific fireboxes, so you will need to check if your setup is compatible with this option.
- Professional installation is required, and this may be off-putting for some.
3. Firebacks are a Simple and Effective Solution
Sometimes the best solution is the simplest one, and this is where firebacks come in. If you haven’t heard of firebacks, they are solid slabs of cast iron that you put in place behind your logs.
The iron absorbs the heat while your gas fireplace burns, and when it’s not burning, that same iron radiates the heat right back into your house.
They don’t require any special installation, and this is one solution that has stood the test of time because it WORKS. So, consider getting a fireback and when you get home and sticking it behind the logs.
Once the fire is out, you can feel the difference for yourself!
4. Fireplace Inserts Help to Increase Efficiency
Another option for maximizing or simply modifying the functionality of your gas fireplace is fireplace inserts. Fireplace inserts replace your current firebox, allowing for new or enhanced functionality.
Below are examples of fireplace inserts and what they are designed to do:
- Direct vent fireplace inserts – A direct vent fireplace insert is a sealed system for circulation. It draws in air from the outside while exhausting the gas from your home as well. This minimizes heat loss and greatly improves the quality of the heat inside your house.
- Ventless fireplace inserts – An alternative to vent-free logs, these inserts look great and perform the same function while often being an easier solution to implement than vent-free logs.
- Wood-burning fireplace inserts – This slight modification is the most effective, as it transforms your fireplace into a wood-burning stove. Suppose your current setup is only partially heating the house, even with a few modifications. In that case, a wood-burning insert might be worth considering – this modification alone can often heat your entire house!
5. Fireplace Heaters can also Boost the Heat
Installing a fireplace heater is a great way to boost the efficiency of your home-heating strategy. Fireplace heaters give your fireplace a little additional time to heat the air properly, circulating it through a series of installed tubes and pipes and distributing the duly-heated air throughout your home.
These are pretty effective, but if you are using glass doors with your fireplace, then you will want to check with the vendor before running a fireplace heater with glass doors in place.
While some glass doors will be compatible, many are not, so you will want to check with the selected heater’s vendor to ensure that your doors will be compatible or if you may need to install a different set to accommodate your fireplace heater.
6. Glass Doors are Attractive and Reduce Heat-Loss
Glass doors look amazing, and they work best in conjunction with a chimney damper. The damper closes off your chimney to keep the heat in, and by closing your glass doors, you’ve got an additional barrier to trap that heat inside and reduce the loss of heat in your home.
We should note that glass doors are not intended to be closed when burning your glass stove. While it might look pretty, this is not their intended use in most cases.
There are specialized glass doors designed to give you the option of opening or closing them at any time, but with most models, you’ll want to consult the manual if you intend to close them during fireplace operation.
For everyday use, when the fireplace is off, close the glass doors, and you’ve got an extra protective barrier for keeping in the heat. They’re simple but effective, and they look great in your fireplace. Make sure that you are using them correctly!
7. Install a Chimney Fan
Chimney fans are another way to increase the temperature inside. Mounted on the top of your chimney, these small but powerful fans create a draft inside that maximizes your flame’s burn-efficiency while also venting out gases from your home. In the case of wood-burning fireplaces, they also vent out soot and smoke, but they are still quite effective with getting the most out of your gas fireplace.
This option will be compatible with both single-flue or multiple-flue configurations, and there are chimney fans designed to work with dampers as well. This will involve a little wiring; however, so professional installation from a licensed electrician in your area will be required to implement this solution.
8. Finally, Increased Circulation Inside can Make a Difference
Not all of our tips today require making modifications to your fireplace. However, a little strategic circulation in your house can and does make quite a difference. A great way to do this is to purchase one or more room-to-room fans.
Room-to-room fans are designed to be installed first in the doorway or doorways of the room hosting your fireplace, with the intent of circulating the heated air outside of that room into the rest of the house. You can build on this with multiple fans, creating circulation networks using adjoining doorways, each with its room-to-room fans.
Installation for room-to-room fans is relatively minimal, as well, making them quite an attractive option. Just mount your room-to-room fan in the door, turn it on, and the air will begin to circulate.
If the room hosting your fireplace tends to be a little TOO warm, then room-to-room fans provide you with an ideal heat distribution option that is simple, cost-effective, and will easily help you to put that extra heat to its intended use.
In Closing: A Little Strategy can Make a World of Difference
Today we’ve talked about how to get more heat from gas fireplace installations, and as it turns out, you’ve got quite a few options! Dampers and glass doors can help keep the heat inside, while vent-free logs or inserts can help with circulation.
In addition, fireplace heaters can ensure that air is adequately heated before distribution, while fireplace inserts can enhance or even give you new functionality!
Finally, you can even keep things simple by increasing circulation with room-to-room fans to help distribute heat from that reliable, solid fireback that you’ve placed behind the logs. Your chimney fan will make sure that the gas fire gets it nice and hot for you, and you’ll be enjoying the benefits all winter.
Whatever strategy you choose, you can keep excellent and toasty for the chilly winter to come with these tips!