In this case, turn off your pilot light to help reduce your gas bill and generally make your home a bit safer. While most gas fireplace inserts need to exhaust fumes through the chimney, a direct vent fireplace uses a sealed chamber to draw in fresh air and expel exhaust through a specialized pipe that exits the house through a wall or roof opening. I have found the best way to seal an unused fireplace flue is to install a piece of slate or thin stone on top of the unused flue tile using masonry caulk to adhere the stone. Make sure that it is clear of any extraneous debris. I have a brick chimney that is a wood fireplace. There are even ventless gas fireplaces that don’t require any venting systems at all. Is There Environmentally Friendly Spray Foam Insulation? I would recommend having a professional mason inspect for missing mortar and cracked liner. When shopping for gas logs, you'll find two basic types: gas logs that vent to the outside just like a wood-burning fireplace and gas logs that are not vented at all. I would like to keep the fireplace as an ornamental area, showing exposed brickwork inside the chimney and maybe place some fir cones or nice silver bark but I dont want to actually fit a real fire. Plus, get tips for a clean and solid installation. But to keep the fire burning, it has to be fed. We have discovered an old fireplace in a bedroom. The only problem with this is that it has to be re-inflated from time to time. Choose a color that is similar or complementary to the existing fireplace. When it comes to considering deadly carcinogens like carbon monoxide, this type of vented gas fireplace carries a special appeal because there is no risk of deadly gasses getting into the room—all the air is vented outside. Even an unused brick fireplace requires maintenance to retain its beauty, and the most frequent area of failure is brick mortar. While we could fit another 6" round liner in the existing space, at 30" wide, the fireplace needed at least a 9" round flue to work properly. When used daily as they are intended to be used, fireplaces can be efficient. Other (Corner/3 Sided) Indoor/Outdoor. Adding to your cart. Title: October 1958 FIREPLACE AND ORIGINAL COOKING CRANE IN EASTERNMOST ROOM This fireplace was sealed off sometime in the nineteenth century, and reopened during the War Department restoration of 1928-30. Some fireplaces are beautiful architectural features in themselves, but with others, the warmth of the hearth and flickering glow of fire are all … If you have one or more masonry fireplaces in your home, you can save big money on your heating bills by sealing them off when not in use (or permanently, if you never plan to use them). If you have at least 3' between the candles and the balloon you can use them at the same time and even retain the candle heat into the room. Like all fireplaces, moisture damage poses a serious risk to the operation of your gas fireplace. If the chimney is not sealed, the smoke will tend to flow upward and none will flow out of the fireplace. Now, if you already have a hearth with a fireplace and chimney, you may not see the point in switching to a highfalutin, rootin-tootin newfangled gas fireplace. In the fireplace, that is. If you want to seal your fireplace off for good, the easiest way to do so in a hurry is to cut out a foam insulation plug, place it at the bottom of your chimney, and caulk or weatherstrip it in place. A Word of Caution Sealing the gaps with fiberglass and insulating your home is a do-it-yourself job that can easily be handled in an afternoon. But, if you’re tempted to see what’s behind a blocked up chimney, what do you need to know about Building Regs, costs and how to do it safely to make sure you don’t end up with a whole lot of mess? You can curl your fingers around a mug of hot chocolate and watch the logs inside the fireplace snap, crackle, and pop (hopefully not that last one). Usually, the chimney becomes a costly and somewhat annoying part of home maintenance, needing to be cleaned regularly (at least once a year) and even posing some health and safety hazards if it gets clogged up. But in that case, you might want to consider that a gas fireplace insert can go right in your existing hearth, without having to do any structural modifications. Available in two sizes, both gas fireplace insert models feature sealed combustion, direct vent technology that keeps warm air in and cold air out , assuring high air quality, maximum efficiency and trouble-free operation in today's tight homes. 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