Indoor Gas Fireplaces

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Venting Is the Decision, Everything Else Follows Three kinds of indoor gas fireplace sit on this page, and they are genuinely different appliances rather than three styles of one. The difference is where combustion air comes from and where the exhaust goes, and it determines whether you need a flue, whether the front is glass or open, and in some places whether you are allowed to install it at all. Settle this first and the rest of the shortlist follows. Direct Vent, Vent-Free and Vented Direct vent is a sealed appliance. It draws combustion air from outside and exhausts outside through a coaxial pipe, usually straight out an exterior wall rather than up a chimney. The glass front is part of that seal , not a styling choice, which is why a direct vent unit is always glass-fronted and why the glass does not come off. Vent-free draws combustion air from the room and returns the heat to it, so it needs no flue at all and delivers the most heat per BTU of any option here. Because it cannot be sealed and still work, it is open-fronted with a mesh safety barrier rather than glass. Vent-free rules vary by jurisdiction and some areas restrict or prohibit them, so confirm what is permitted where you are building before you order. Vented models, including most gas log sets, exhaust up an existing masonry chimney with the damper open. They give the most convincing fire because the flame is not constrained by a sealed box, and they put the least heat into the room because most of it goes up the flue. Insert or Built-In The other half of the decision is what you are starting with. Inserts fit inside a masonry firebox you already have, which is the usual route when converting a wood-burning fireplace and the reason the existing opening dimensions matter more than anything on the spec sheet. Built-ins are framed into a new wall, so the rough opening and, on a direct vent model, the vent run have to be planned before the wall closes. What to Confirm Before Ordering Natural gas or p