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

On a frigid Oakwood day, nothing “warms” up a space (metaphorically speaking) like a roaring fireplace. The light, sound and movement all mix for a romantic, relaxing ambiance.

Unfortunate truth is, an open-hearth woodburning fireplace barely heats a space. Up to 90 percent of the fire’s heat escapes through the chimney. An open fire actually pulls 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 Oakwood!

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

Homeowners can select between gas fireplace inserts and wood fireplace inserts. Both are offered by Butler Chimneys, your fireplace and chimney inspection company in Oakwood. 

Which fireplace insert is for you?

 

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

A woodburning fireplace insert generates significantly more heat than gas. The work required is much greater, though. A fire has to be physically ignited, wood added, and air controls adjusted to moderate the blaze. Because it burns so effectively, a wood fireplace insert uses much less timber than an open-hearth design. For those with unlimited or cheap access to firewood in Oakwood, a wood burning insert can be significantly heating source for a home.

The decision between gas or woodburning is purely user preference. Many Oakwood homeowners proactively put in insert-style fireplaces for greater heat and cleanliness, often when designing homes.

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

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

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

Butler Chimneys regularly installs fireplace inserts – gas or wood – in homes in Oakwood 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 have lifetime warranties. Their installation can sometimes allow homeowners to skip expensive chimney repairs that would otherwise be needed to ensure safe venting of fireplace gases.

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