Enjoy Your Fireplace Ambiance, and Increase the Heat, With a Fireplace Insert!

On a cold Cambridge day, nothing “warms” up a room (metaphorically speaking) like a blazing fireplace. The light, sound and movement all combine for a romantic, relaxing atmosphere.

Unfortunate fact is, an open-hearth woodburning fireplace hardly warms a space. Up to 90 percent of the fire’s heat goes up the chimney. An open fire actually sucks more heat out of a space than it could possibly return. Homeowners endure a fire risk from airborne sparks landing on flammable surfaces, as well.

Ready to make your fireplace experience safer, far warmer and more pleasurable)? {Upgrade with a sleek, highly-efficient fireplace insert in Cambridge!

Inserted directly into the fireplace opening, a fireplace insert for a woodburning fireplace is a self-contained component that sends heat directly into a room, rather than losing most through a chimney. The fire can be seen through a glass panel. The ambiance remains – along with far more warmth!

Homeowners can choose between gas fireplace inserts and wood fireplace inserts. Both are available from Butler Chimneys, your fireplace and chimney inspection company in Cambridge. 

Which fireplace insert is for you?

 

A gas insert is custom-made for those who want instant, low-maintenance fire. The fire literally ignites at the flip of a switch. Available in a wide array of designs, gas fireplace inserts are fast, clean, and little effort to operate and maintain.

A woodburning fireplace insert creates significantly more heat than gas. The work involved is much greater, though. A fire has to be physically started, wood added, and air controls adjusted to control the blaze. Because it burns so efficiently, a wood fireplace insert consumes much less timber than an open-hearth setup. For those with unlimited or cheap sources of firewood in Cambridge, a wood burning insert can be additional heating source for a home.

The decision between gas or woodburning is purely user preference. Many Cambridge homeowners proactively install insert-style fireplaces for greater heat and cleanliness, often when constructing homes.

The alternative scenario for adding an insert is when a fireplace inspection reveals cracked or missing flue tiles. Installing a brand-new insert will get around many issues, and is often less expensive than making repairs. The decision might not be too hard.

Fireplace inserts are made of heavy-gauge sheet steel. The doors are cast iron, which allows fantastic heat conduction. Fire is completely enclosed within, seen through ceramic glass, and can be left unattended.

Smoke is exhausted via a new stainless steel liner installed inside the chimney. Wood fireplace inserts use a single 6-inch liner; gas, two 3-inch liners, one for delivering air to the firebox, and another for exhausting gases.

Butler Chimneys regularly installs fireplace inserts – gas or wood – in homes in Cambridge in one day. If the former is added, a new fuel line is run from a gas source elsewhere in the house.

New stainless steel chimney liners carry lifetime warranties. Their installation can sometimes allow homeowners to bypass pricey chimney repairs that would otherwise be needed to ensure safe venting of fireplace gases.

Another advantage of fireplace inserts? If power goes out, they remain a steady, reliable heat source. In severe weather, they can literally be a lifesaver.

Ready to ponder a fireplace insert? Contact Butler Chimneys. You’ll enjoy the ambiance of a fireplace … and a far warmer, more comfortable space around you!