We had our wood burning fp converted to a gas insert 5 years ago. We have natural gas, so there is a gas line running to it. We use it almost every night from the start of cold weather until sometime in May give or take. We love it!

We had our wood burning fp at our lake condo converted about 4 years ago. We had a natural gas line available too. It was an old fireplace system so we also had the chimney flue and cap replaced at the same time which cost some extra dollars but well worth the peace of mind. Since it's usually chilly when we go there in winter, we love it for quickly warming up the place.

I use propane for my gas fireplace. it works fine. In my area, I can either lease or own the tank. We lease from the propane supplier.

We didn't convert but we do have a gas fireplace and an in-ground LP tank. It works fine. In fact the gas fireplace throws a lot more heat than a regular fp, and because it is closed up it also prevents a lot more heat loss than a regular fp when it's not in use.

To save more energy, look for those that don't have a pilot light.

We have gas fireplace both at home and at our beach house. At home we have natural gas, at beach house we have propane tank. Both work great. I love the convenience of flipping a switch for instant fire!

I would hate to totally give up the ability to use wood. What if they have a prolonged power outage in winter, how do you keep warm? I would find some type of gas insert and keep the ability to burn wood. Some government regulations should not be followed blindly!

I have always been a die hard wood burner with either an energy efficient wood stove or fireplace such as KozyHeat. Then I moved last year to a townhome with gas FP and lake home with a gigantic not efficient wood burning FP. Surprisingly we love the gas FP - the convenience is the big thing. Now I'm trying to figure out what is the largest gas insert I can find that will have the biggest viewing area. Even DH is nearly convinced. We have natural gas so running a line to it won't be an issue.

What brand do people have? Does anyone have a really big one?

10 years ago we redecorated our current home and we covered the brick with black granite with tiny gray speckles ( don't remember the name), added a custom cherry mantel and converted to natural gas. We already have gas heat so that made it easy.

We picked a Jotul gas stove in a cream color - it has doors that open and a metal screen which mimics a real wood burning stove. We installed a double walled flue pipe. We both love it. It has both a thermostat and a remote control. At times I do miss the aroma of a wood fire but the convenience is hard to beat.

We have a vacation home on 100+ acres of forest so we have more wood than we could ever burn. We have a 1,000 gallon propane tank buried in the yard and that provides fuel for our heating system, hot water and cooktop. We do have a huge Hearthstone woodburning stove in the great room which is capable of heating most of the house. We also have a smaller wood burning stove in the finished walk out basement.

In our bedroom we installed a Hearthstone gas fireplace and a Jotul gas fireplace in the apartment over the garage.

We've used the 2 gas stoves for 20 years without incident. I can recommend either brand and if we move we'll go the gas route again.

I also converted my wood fireplace to gas. I already had gas in the house but we did need to run a line to the fireplace. Couldn't be happier.

The one thing I wanted to add is that the fireplace continues to work in the case of a power outage. There is a power switch and I have a remote control with thermostat for auto-temp control but the power source for both is battery.

We converted one of ours (due to new code and a remodel that doomed it) and it's okay. Doesn't give my kid asthma like wood does. I still don't like the fake logs and kept my 1950s spark screen over it to obscure it when not in use but it sure does make a nice fire.

I'm not sure I would do it if it required a tank unless I had other uses for the tank. Nice barbecue setup perhaps?

Lyban,

Is she in Montreal? See the link to the topic. It is not banning wood fired appliances but making sure that the appliances meet the guidelines for particulate matter. If she still wants wood, I would invest in a new wood stove that meet the current US EPA guidelines which I believe are the same as the Canadian Particulate matter requirements. Most of all the European wood stoves meet this requirements as far as I know. I would not bring in propane if it did not have another use.

Good luck!

Hi all,

Just getting back to this forum have had a really busy week. Thanks for all the replies. Most here that converted seem to love it but reading the replies I see that pretty much everyone already had gas in their homes. Yes, we are in Montreal and will look into by laws again but I still think that it would be a nice convenience to have Gas except for the tank that we would need.

You guys are really helpful with your answers, if anyone else has ideas please post.

Homepro, just curious why you would not bring in gas if not with another use? We don't have natural gas but really wanted a gas range. It was not very expensive to have a propane tank installed. We do have a wood burning stove and would not consider converting it to propane unless we were required to do so, or develop mobility issues. We never even gave it a thought convert it when we decided to bring in propane for cooking. i certainly see the advantages to having a gas FP and wouldn't discourage someone from converting from wood, but wonder why you don't recommend it if they aren't going to use gas for any other purpose?

4Kids,

Full disclosure, I have a gas fireplace insert that behaves like a stove. I am currently roasting in front of it:-) I love being able to use a remote to start my gas fireplace. Having said that, my home already has a gas water heater and a gas wok burner. If I were an all electric house, I would have gotten a wood burning stove insert. The newer wood stoves with catalytic converters are fairly easy to start and use very little wood at a time. They also minimize air leakage into the house.

In my area, if you don't have a gas line already, it is cost prohibitive to get one. I had a friend who built in a neighborhood that did not have it. The cost was north of $5k (US dollars). I personally don't love propane and the power reduction in the appliances when using propane is a concern.

I also have an induction cooktop. Knowing what I know now, I would have readily bought the induction wok burner and skipped gas. I live in a snow area and any time the wind blows, we lose power. I have a small generator that will not run the induction cooktop but I have a grill outside and can use a camp stove when needed. The gas wok burner is a fail safe when the power is out.

For the cost to bring in both propane and gas lines, if one is not existing, I would spend the money on a fabulous wood fireplace:-)

I want to be clear because I often get confused by fireplaces. I am referring to fireplaces that act as heat sources, not just something that is pretty to look at but actually can heat a room or several rooms. They function like stoves and can be used with ducting to heat other rooms.

I have the Mendota FV44

I would have loved to have the Morso Wood burning fireplace insert. This is a youtube video to give you an idea of how they operate. If money were no object, I would get a Phenix Green.

Good luck!