Enjoy Your Fireplace Ambiance, and Heighten its Warmth, With a Fireplace Insert!

On a cold Oconomowoc day, nothing “warms” up a room (metaphorically speaking) like a roaring fireplace. The light, sound and movement all mix for a romantic, relaxing environment.

Unfortunate truth is, an open-hearth woodburning fireplace hardly heats a space. Up to 90 percent of the fire’s heat goes up 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 combustible surfaces, as well.

Ready to make your fireplace experience safer, far warmer and more Transform it with a sleek, highly-efficient fireplace insert in Oconomowoc!

Inserted directly into the fireplace opening, a fireplace insert for a woodburning fireplace is a self-contained appliance that directs heat directly into a room, rather than sending most through a chimney. The fire is visible via a glass panel. The ambiance stays – 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 Oconomowoc. 

Which fireplace insert is for you?

 

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

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

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

The alternative situation for adding an insert is when a fireplace inspection reveals cracked or missing flue tiles. Installing a brand-new insert will avoid many issues, and is often less costly 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, viewable 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 delivering air to the firebox, and another for exhausting gases.

Butler Chimneys typically installs fireplace inserts – gas or wood – in homes in Oconomowoc 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 permit homeowners to bypass costly 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 appreciate the ambiance of a fireplace … and a far warmer, more comfortable space around you!