Keep Your Fireplace Ambiance, and Heighten its Heat, With a Fireplace Insert!

On a frigid Prospect day, nothing “warms” up a room (metaphorically speaking) like a blazing fireplace. The light, sound and movement all blend for a romantic, relaxing environment.

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 draws more heat out of a space than it could ever return. Homeowners endure a fire risk from airborne sparks landing on combustible surfaces, as well.

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

Going 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 sending most through a chimney. The fire is visible 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 available from Butler Chimneys, your fireplace and chimney inspection company in Prospect. 

Which fireplace insert is for you?

 

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

A woodburning fireplace insert creates 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 thoroughly, a wood fireplace insert uses much less timber than an open-hearth setup. For those with unlimited or cheap sources of firewood in Prospect, a wood burning insert can be significantly heating source for a home.

The choice between gas or woodburning is entirely user preference. Many Prospect homeowners proactively install insert-style fireplaces for enhanced heat and cleanliness, often when building homes.

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

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 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 expelling gases.

Butler Chimneys regularly installs fireplace inserts – gas or wood – in homes in Prospect 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 avoid 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 appreciate the ambiance of a fireplace … and a far warmer, more comfortable space around you!