Traditional masonry fireplaces have a wonderful aesthetic appeal with their big firebox full of leaping flames surrounded by handsome stone, brick or granite surrounds. Unfortunately, for all their charm, these fireplaces are highly inefficient in using their fuel to heat your home. You can solve this problem with a new fireplace insert.
What is a fireplace insert?
As the name implies, an insert is like a fireplace in a box that’s designed to fit into the firebox of an existing fireplace. Fueled by gas, wood or pellets, fireplace inserts preserve the natural eye-appeal of a masonry unit but add something no traditional fireplace can: heat.
Fireplace inserts operate on a closed-combustion system, which preserves heat and makes it available as heat you can feel in your home. These appliances come with heat-efficiency ratings of 70% all the way up past 90%. This rating tells how much of the heat the unit generates will be available as heat for you and your family.
Compare this to an open-burning wood fireplace, and you see there’s really no comparison. Masonry fireplaces carry heat-efficiency ratings of 15% or 20%, sometimes even lower. The reason is because they send up to 24,000 cubic feet of warm air up the chimney every hour.
Types of fireplace inserts
Whether you choose a gas, wood or pellet insert, you’ll bring a whole new level of enjoyment to your lifestyle. Which fuel is ideal for you?
Gas inserts: A new gas fireplace insert will be easy to operate with switches or a remote. You’ll get heat as soon as you turn it on. Gas inserts can run on natural gas or propane and are simple to install when the work is done by trained technicians.
The log sets that can be added to a gas insert look amazingly like real wood, providing that special visual appeal so many people enjoy. Very little maintenance is required, and these units create zero mess in your home.
Wood inserts: High-performing wood fireplace inserts let you enjoy a real wood fire while adding a lot of warmth to your room. Operationally, they’re the same as your traditional masonry fireplace – load the logs, start the fire and sit back and enjoy it.
All wood-burning appliances need to have their chimneys or vent pipes inspected and cleaned annually to remove flammable creosote, which is created during the combustion process.
Pellet inserts: If you really want a wood fire but also would like some convenience, pellet fireplace inserts are a good choice. Pellets are small pieces of agricultural or manufacturing wood waste that are easy to handle, store and use.
A hopper attached to the pellet insert adds a predetermined amount of fuel to the fire, meaning there’s little for you to do. Pellet inserts can keep a fire going for up to 36 hours before you need to refill the hopper.
Are you ready to take a step up in efficiency and start paying less to heat your home? Visit the FyrePro showroom at 4631 S. Mason St. Suite B5 in Fort Collins, CO, and discover the many advantages of a new gas, wood or pellet fireplace insert for your home. We install the products we sell. Call us with questions at (970) 266-8556.