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Gas fireplace to wood burning question.

10 years ago

I would like to convert my gas fireplace to a wood burning fireplace, I understand I need to remove the gas logs and change out the gas set-up and replace with a fire stater pipe, should I do anything else? Does this fireplace look compatible to convert to a wood burning fireplace. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

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Comments (5)

rebeccamomof123
10 years ago
Hi there - see my question below yours - I think we are doing The exact opposite. Unfortunately, I can't help answer your question but you may be able to help answer mine ;) Is yours currently the vent or vent-free longs? Do you have a full enclosure or just the gas logs? Why are you switching? I do love a real wood fire but they are just so messy. I as hoping gas woudl offer the ambiance of a real fire without the mess. Thoughts?
Rbb469
Original Author
10 years ago
I have the vented set-up, not the full enclosure. I'm ready for the mess of a real fireplace:) I just prefer having a real fire. In my region gas is outrageous to run any length of time and would just rather a good ole fire.
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First, DO NOT get a ventless system. Many building codes actually outlaw them. I think they all should because the build up of fumes can be dangerous. Therefore, the choice is between a VENTED gas log system and something called DIRECT VENT system. A vented system works pretty much like your present conventional wood burning fireplace. It will provide some heat, but most of the heat will go up the chimney. It is not an energy efficient system. A direct vent system is comprised of a sealed firebox equipped with 2 vents that go up the chimney -- one to exhaust the fumes and the other to bring in fresh air to feed the combustion. It is very energy efficient, and can give off some serious heat. Direct vent systems are costly and take close to a whole day to install, assuming you already have a gas line in place. You really should consider this option if you want more than just the pleasant appearance of a flame. One more consideration: Since direct vent system can get very hot, it's a good idea to get one with a remote thermostat. Otherwise you'll wind up turning the thing on and off over and over again. But if you live in a climate zone where a kit of heat is not the primary consideration, for instance in Florida, a vented gas log system would be a reasonable option. If a really DRAMATIC dancing flame is what you're looking for, I think the Eiklor brand is the gold standard. But it will use a LOT OF GAS, and most of the heat will go up the chimney. So you're almost literally burning money with that one. I'm partial to direct vent. We have one here in North Carolina, and we love it. Make sure you find someone with a good local reputation to do the installation. Otherwise you'll wind up with buyer's remorse.
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Now hold on guys. Yes, caution is absolutely required here. However, I have a builder grade fireplace that looks very similar to the OP's unit. Mine is designed for either wood or gas. My unit has the same cheesy thin metal like stuff. If you look at the other pics on flicker, you will see that the unit has a full above roof chase and what appears to be a spark cap. I believe my unit has one of those huge 14" flues which is common for these units. This one doesn't seem to be that large, which makes me wonder if it is indeed a wood burner. The top of the front of the unit also has something that looks like sheet metal extending down into the firebox that is different from mine and that makes me think of gas. Remember, these are open fireplaces and don't really generate dramatic heat. My cheesy back fake bricks never got damaged in any way. So, two points: the 'fireplace' may indeed be designed for wood and you will need to check further; AND you aren't going to heat much with this thing either.
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First of all, there is a 30% tax credit (on parts and labor!) on better-quality inserts right now if you can get them in service (not just paid for) by Dec. 31. I suggest you see if you can get an insert job done; Maybe Uncle Sam will pay for the insert if you cover the labor. Now for your main question about doing it without an insert. I looked into this once and concluded that without an insert, gas log conversions from any type wood burning fireplace are mainly for ambience, not heat. The best I could come up with was, I learned that some RH Petersen logs with GF in the part number are designed to work with doors closed and thus keep the heat in the firebox instead of going up the flue. Maybe we could hear from someone with GF logs. There are also some other brands that advertise "reduced vent" logs, you might ask about those. In both cases I have my doubts about, even if it does produce heat, how much, and is it practical to get it to work with a thermostat.
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thats what i did (or had done) cap the gas line as low to the floor as possible, shut it off, and insert wood.
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akamainegrower
10 years ago
Rebeccamom123: You need to be very cautious about this. Have the chimney inspected by a certified chimney sweep or your local fire department if they offer this service. You need to make sure your chimney is lined and that the lining is in good condition. Burning wood, unlike burning gas, produces creosote and much higher temperatures. If this fireplace was originally intended for wood burning, you're probably all set as long as the chimney lining is in good condition. If, on the other hand, it was intended for gas from the start neither the fireplace itself nor the chimney may be safe for wood burning.

I'm not sure what a fire starter pipe is, but if you mean a gas pipe, I'm pretty sure combining gas and wood burning in one fireplace would be a code violation, not to mention a very serious fire hazard.
berlin
10 years ago
Everything said by akamaingrower is spot on except this:
"I'm not sure what a fire starter pipe is, but if you mean a gas pipe, I'm pretty sure combining gas and wood burning in one fireplace would be a code violation, not to mention a very serious fire hazard."

Gas starter pipes are the norm in most of the country; there's nothing illegal or hazardous about them. HOWEVER, you do need to make sure that the gas plumbing allows (heat can move back through the pipe if not plumbed properly) a simple switch to a starter pipe.

You have a low-end pre-fab fireplace with a thin sheet metal firebox. You have a thinwall non-stainless air insulated chimney - these tend to rust the inner liner and cause problems. This will not be a good wood-burning fireplace. you can switch, but it's performance with wood won't be great. If you had a real masonry fireplace (with an appropriately high chimney) then the performance, safety, and durability would be much better; these are rarely installed by builders any more because the costs can be 10-50 times higher.
mox1
10 years ago
We took our fireplace from gas to wood burning. Easy as pie. We capped off the gas and got rid of the ceramic logs, etc., then just used it as a wood burning. Worked for the 14 years we were there. The fireplace initially was a wood burner that the folks before us made into gas. We had a fireplace guy (whatever that means) come out and make sure we could burn wood, and I think we had a plumber fix the gas. Sorry not to be more specific but as you can see, I don't know much about it other than we hired the right people to do it/verify that it was ok to burn wood in it and then it was fine.

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