Indoor Fireplaces

About

Choosing an Indoor Fireplace Starts With the Room, Not the Look Every indoor fireplace here produces a flame or a convincing image of one. What separates them is what the room has to give: a gas line, an exterior wall for a vent, a dedicated circuit, or nothing but an outlet. Settle that first and the shortlist takes care of itself, because the styling exists in every fuel. What Each Fuel Asks of the Room Electric needs a circuit and nothing else. Plug-in models hang the same day; built-in models are framed into a wall. They heat with a fan-forced coil, which is why they warm a room but do nothing useful outdoors. Gas gives a real flame and real heat, and splits into two very different appliances. Vent-free models need no flue at all. Direct vent models are sealed and exhaust through an exterior wall, which has to be planned before framing. Ethanol burns a real flame with no gas line and no flue, refuelled by hand from a bottle. Water vapor creates the flame effect from mist and light with no combustion, which suits places where a real flame is not permitted. Gel burns canned fuel, needs no installation at all, and is the simplest way to put a real flame in a room. Vent-Free and Direct Vent Are Not Two Styles of the Same Thing The difference is where combustion air comes from, and it changes what the appliance looks like. A direct vent fireplace is sealed, drawing air from outside and exhausting outside, and the glass front is part of that seal rather than a design decision. A vent-free fireplace draws combustion air from the room, so it cannot be closed behind glass and still work. What it carries instead is a mesh safety barrier , a required part rather than an accessory, and several models retract it into hidden pockets for a clear view. Vent-free rules vary by jurisdiction, so confirm what is permitted where you are building. Where It Sits in the Wall A unit cannot recess into a wall shallower than itself. A 2x4 wall gives about 3.5 inches of usable depth and a