When you see the picture of the perfect American living room in a house, there is a cozy room with a sofa, a recliner, and a beautifully burning fireplace. People love to sit by the fireplace and watch the flames surround the logs. The fireplace not only adds warmth, but also adds atmosphere. Unfortunately, a fireplace in a house is not perfect. There are many problems that make a fireplace very inefficient.
When a fireplace is lit, it radiates heat into the air around it. But it also creates a current that actually pulls that air out of your room and up the chimney. So basically the hot air escapes and your fireplace has to work even harder to heat your room. Yes, there is a damper in a chimney that supposedly prevents inside air from escaping and outside air from entering. But most are not very well built and the seal around the edges of the shock still allows air to escape.
There are a few things you can do to fix this problem. There is a damper you can buy that is installed at the top of the fireplace. This damper acts like a storm door and has a seal so air can’t sneak around it. You can get such a product online, and you can install it yourself if you feel comfortable on top of your roof.
Another option you have is to change your wood fireplace for a gas one. You can get a gas fireplace insert that can look like a regular wood burning fireplace. These heaters have artificial logs that look like they are burning. Depending on the construction and budget of your home, you have several options on how to install and vent your fireplace. Most gas fireplaces use propane or natural gas sources. Many homeowners opt for this type of change because they get tired of having to keep the cut wood and dispose of the ashes. A gas fireplace eliminates that need.
You can also replace your fireplace with an electric heater. There are portable electric heaters that look like fireplaces. You can get an electric fireplace heater that has a fan that can very efficiently heat an entire room quickly. Electric heaters are very efficient in the way they heat a room. 100% of the electricity used is converted into heat and returned to the room.
Another drawback is that the fireplace is usually in the room with the thermostat. The room with the fireplace gets very hot and the thermostat turns off the heat. This makes the rooms in the rest of the house cooler because the fireplace doesn’t heat them. This may have you looking to get a portable space heater for other rooms in your home.