What is a High Efficiency Direct Vent Gas Fireplace?
It's actually a tested and listed wall furnace!
Imagine a gas fireplace that can heat multiple rooms, is very efficient, can look like a wood burning appliance, does not have any odors and can provide the perfect amount of thermostatically controlled heat…
It's called a direct vent fireplace. I love these things! As a seller of gas fireplaces, we just don't get any dissatisfied customers with this product. Please realize, we sell the best of the best. They are extremely realistic.
The vent system is ingenious! It uses venting that both supplies the fireplace with air for combustion of the fire and exhaust for the flue gases. No possibility of odors or carbon monoxide! Another great option for a NetZero home or a tightly constructed home.
If there is a downside, a customer without any previous knowledge of the product would think it's too expensive. To the customer who bit the bullet and purchased a good one, they are the happy campers!
These products have so much versatility. They can be purchased with the look of a standard wood burning fireplace, look like a linear wood burning fireplace or can be set up with modern looking interiors and media (glass, stones, and more).
This is a perfect product for the Southeast if you purchase a model that has a way to dump heat. What do I mean by dump heat? Well, like I said earlier, these things are heating machines. They are tested and listed to the wall furnace standard. People like them so much they want to run them all the time. Many of our units, offer a way to dump the heat to an an unheated area in your house, like the garage. You can even purchase units that allow the heat to flow to two adjacent rooms with optional heat distribution systems. The units can distribute heat to a room above, below or adjacent to the room it is installed.
Other options available are interior lighting. They can be used as night lights or you can operate the unit with the lights on to highlight the interiors of the fireplace. Multiple different looking log sets are available. The fireplaces are available with a madrid of interior liners. The inside walls of the fireplace can look like brick, ledgestone, simple black, a tile look and even reflective sidewalls and back panel to give the illusion of even more flame!
Most of these units are set up thermostatically so that they can be used as intended…A primary heat source within the house.
The utility companies suggest that you zone heat. In other words, why run the central heat when, during the day you are in the common living areas. Why not just heat the daytime living area and let your central system heat the rest of the house at night.
If you invest in one of the better units. The unit will heat power or not. They will come with a battery backup to power the burner. Granted, the fan on the system will not operate during a power outage but these fireplaces do not use glass in front of the logs or modern media. They use a product called pyroglass or ceramic glass. This type of glass does not stop any of the heat.
Remember to consider this product as an option for new construction, remodeling or if you live in an area with inconsistent power.
Stay safe and warm!
