Fireplace~Unknown if works,Can I Install a Ventless Fireplace In It? How Do These Things Work??? (floor, fireplaces)

[IrishTiltedKilt]

I am purchasing a home with a fireplace that has a chimney outside. The owner's have never lived in the house, and do not know if the fireplace works.

Can I install a ventless fireplace inside the existing fireplace and have it work??? How exactly does a ventless fireplace work??? Does it give off heat???? If the power goes out, can it give me warmth??????

I have no clue about this....do I need a chimney sweep or something??????

Thanks~~~~

[nightbird47]

If you are in California you can't. Ventless heaters are not legal. All the other states they are.

I have a ventless heater and placing it in the right place kept my house warm quite well this winter. The way they work is by burning some 99 percent plus of the natural gas/propane and the fumes are turned into moisture. Its a type of convection heating which heats floor and furnature so the air stays warmer. If you put it in a fireplace you'd be guarenteed enough ventilation, and might want to almost close off that flue.

Exactly how they work is explained online but I can testify to it being very efficent. The one I have has a fan which is the only electrictical part. The heater itself does not require power which is useful in a situation where the power could be out.

If you get something like this make SURE you get a professional to install it. They must be set up properly and there is no room for guessing. I've never had to turn it up very high which is far more efficent than an electric heater. Placing some air flow fans in the right places to spread the heat also makes it more efficent.

[jctx]

I would guess you could to the vented gas fireplace in California, though. These are good as well, right? Here is some info on the ventless, but it not very useful if you cant get it: Ventless Gas Fireplaces, Freestanding, Natural, Modern, Propane, Zero Clearance

Gas Fireplaces & Ventless Gas Fireplaces

You can use your existing fireplace. You do need a professional, and you do need to have your fireplace inspected and serviced/cleaned to be sure its safe - if the owners dont know about its operability right now, can you not ask them to guarantee it works before your purchase?

I actually came on here this morning to post about our fireplace, too, so your post caught my eye. Good luck!

[nightbird47]

Originally Posted by jctx

I would guess you could to the vented gas fireplace in California, though. These are good as well, right? Here is some info on the ventless, but it not very useful if you cant get it: Ventless Gas Fireplaces, Freestanding, Natural, Modern, Propane, Zero Clearance

Gas Fireplaces & Ventless Gas Fireplaces

You can use your existing fireplace. You do need a professional, and you do need to have your fireplace inspected and serviced/cleaned to be sure its safe - if the owners dont know about its operability right now, can you not ask them to guarantee it works before your purchase?

I actually came on here this morning to post about our fireplace, too, so your post caught my eye. Good luck!

Yes, the vented ones are legal. I believe they work similarly to the ventless type, meaning they burn all but a small fraction of the gas, and have an outside vent. Even with the ventless you have to have some sort of airflow into a room.

The type which are enclosed but have a flames do come in larger sizes, and I think this is what would do well in a fireplace. The advantage over the completely open line you can put in a fireplace is that its enclosed and all the heat is directed out instead of most of it dissapearing straight up. The heater needs to be near the edge of the fireplace too, where the heat will not be sucked inside. The vent is not open to the fireplace, but a pipe that extends up into the chimney. The rest of the space at the opening is *I beleive* sealed to keep the cold air from filling the room.

They also make the vented/ventless gas version of a ceramic heater. These heat the tiles and blow the hot air outward. The tiles stay hot and these are probably more efficent but don't look like a fire in your fireplace.

I've discovered on the days/nights when its just cool enough to be chilly but not enought to turn on the heater, keeping mine on "pilot" where the heater doesn't light but the pilot is on is all it needs to keep the temperature okay, and on warm days I have to turn it off.

Good luck to the OP and I hope the fireplace is finished. If I had a vent which could be used (they cost about 3k to install) I'd have the stove type. You can make them into a fireplace by putting wood in, and can use them without the gas that way. Or you can use the gas heat. AND they have a flat surface which will cook dinner.