Gas Logs Buyer's Guide

How To Buy The Right Vent-Free Gas Logs For Your Home


Your satisfaction with your logs is dependent on you understanding what you actually need and what you are buying. To take a little of the confusion out of the purchasing decision, I鈥檝e put together this guide to help.


There are two categories of Gas logs available in the US market: vented gas log sets and vent-free gas log sets. Vented gas logs are designed to be installed into a wood-burning fireplace with the damper in the open position. Much of the heat produced by vented gas logs goes up the chimney. Vent-free (or un-vented) gas logs can be used in a regular in wood-burning fireplace (with the damper in any position 鈥?most of the heat will go into the room if the damper is closed) or can be paired with an approved manufactured vent-free firebox insert (that has no chimney). With vent-free gas logs almost all of the heat goes into the room.


Gas logs add the visual sensation of a fireplace to the room without the mess and hassle of burning real wood. Vent-free gas logs also are a perfect choice when you want to add heat to a room and they make a wonderful back-up heat source with the electricity is down.


What Size Gas Logs Do I Need?
Make sure the logs that you are purchasing will fit into your fireplace. Each log set has a set of minimum fireplace dimensions assigned to it. These dimensions are usually listed in the ad or on the carton. If you do not see the minimum dimension requirements for the logs that you are considering purchasing, ask the seller for them or visit the manufacturer鈥檚 web site. Measuring is really simple, you鈥檒l need the Front Width, Back Width, Height and Depth of the fireplace.


Most Logs are available in 18鈥? 24鈥? 30鈥?& 36鈥? However, please note that these are not the actual size of the logs but rather the size category that they are in. You also don鈥檛 want a log that is too small for your fireplace. While the 18鈥?logs are the most cost effective of the sizes, they can often loose their realistic effectiveness in larger fireplaces. Most of the time, you should aim for buying a 24鈥?log set. When manufacturers design gas logs the 24鈥?version is the one that they design first. Then they cut it down to get the 18鈥?model and stretch it out to achieve the 30 & 36鈥?sizes. So, in almost all cases the 24鈥?models look the best.

What Control Type should I Buy?
Vent-free gas logs are available in three control types: Manual Control, Thermostatically (T-Stat) Controlled or Remote Controlled.


Many consumers choose the manual control unit when price is the driving factor in their purchase decision. The draw-back to this control type is that when you want heat, you have to turn it on and when you want the heat to stop, you have to turn it off. One of the biggest complaints that gas log companies receive about manual controlled gas products is that they get the room too hot.


Other consumers purchase the Thermostatically (T-Stat) Controlled models. T-Stat logs turn the flame on and off based on the heat setting that you desire of the room. The draw-back to the T-stat models is that the thermostat bulb is attached to the burner and rest in the fireplace cavity with the log set. Since it gets very hot in there, the logs stay off most of the time. The other complaint that gas log companies receive about their gas logs is 鈥渢hey won鈥檛 come on when my wife is trying to show them鈥? Of course, this is because the thermostat bulb is located so close to the heat (this type of control works much better on other types of fireplace products such as Fireplace Systems - that'll be a future guide).


Knowledgeable consumers usually end up purchasing the Remote Controlled Gas Logs. Please note that most remote controlled logs are sold as 鈥淩emote Control Ready鈥? meaning that you must purchase the remote control separate. You鈥檒l want to factor in an addition $100 to $150 for a good T-Stat remote control. Also keep in mind that there are two basic types of gas log remotes: on/off models and Thermostat controlled remotes. If you purchase the on/off remote, you basically have a manual control log set with a remote control, you turn the heat on and off as desired. The best choice however is the Thermostat Remote Control. This type of remote control gives you a thermostatic log set with a remote control. Set the remote to the heat temperature you desire for the room and the log set will cycle on and off based on that setting. You鈥檒l never pump more heat into the house than you want by going this way (which actually makes these models much more energy efficient that the manual controlled units).

How many BTUs Do I Need?
Vent-free gas logs are limited by regulation to 40,000 BTU. Don鈥檛 confuse this with the BTU of a vented product where most of their heat goes up the chimney. 40,000 BTU is a lot of heat.


As with almost everything else these days, most Americans usually think bigger is better. However, with gas logs this is not the case. Your satisfaction with your purchase will be much better if you buy the right BTU sized unit for the room the gas logs will be in. I鈥檒l breakdown those sizes for you in a moment.


Gas log companies list two numbers when listing BTUs for their products; a low setting BTU output and a high setting BTU output. The low setting is important if you like to watch the fire burn for longer periods of time without the room getting too hot.


Now, lets breakdown those room sizes and BTUs. For a typical room (with 8鈥?ceilings) you can heat about 350 sq. feet with every 10,000 BTUs that you throw at it. For example:


10,000 BTU will heat about 350 sq. feet.
15,000 BTU will heat about 475 sq. feet.
20,000 BTU will heat about 700 sq. feet.
30,000 BTU will heat about 1,050 sq. feet.
40,000 BTU will heat about 1,400 sq. feet.

Now go find the perfect vent-free gas log for your home! I have a full selection in my eBay store, A1WebSales. Drop me an e-mail if you have questions.

Please rate this page below before going off to find the perfect log set for your home. Thx

Vent-Free Gas Logs

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Orignal From: Gas Logs Buyer's Guide