Although they don't produce the heat of a real wood-burning unit, gel-alcohol fireplaces provide a cozy atmosphere and ambiance, all without requiring a flue.
Are gel-alcohol fireplaces any good? My wife and I are more interested in ambience than in heat. Of course, if we can get a little warmth, too, that's a bonus.
I'm a wood guy, but I understand that it isn't for everybody. It's satisfying to cut, split, and burn wood, but it's intense work. And there's a lot of cleanup at every step in the process. If you're not counting on the fireplace to provide heat, maybe the cozy, clean, and pleasant appearance of a gel-alcohol fireplace would be a good fit, even though the flame lacks the depth, complexity, and hypnotic beauty of a wood fire.
These appliances are pretty simple—they're basically a steel box with a ceramic log set, and they burn gelled alcohol in a can. There are also liquid-alcohol fireplaces, many of which have no log set.
The big advantage of these fireplaces is that they don't require a flue, so you can put them nearly anywhere in the house. In some cases, you can also retrofit an existing fireplace so that it will burn gel or liquid alcohol.
The downside? Unvented combustion, whether from a gas kitchen range, a gas-fired ventless fireplace, or even candles, releases pollutants—small amounts of CO, CO2 , water vapor, and particulates—into the indoor air. We're talking about minute quantities of these byproducts, all of which can be harmful to one extent or another if they're allowed to accumulate. Given that the number of times the air will be replenished in a house varies widely—from one or fewer times per hour in a tight house to eight per hour in a leaky one—you're going to have different degrees of combustion-byproduct buildup. It's possible that you'll find small amounts of condensation on cold surfaces and, in the worst case, trace amounts of soot.
Air-quality consultants, building engineers, and combustion-product trade groups have studied the effects of unvented combustion on indoor air quality. As you might imagine, these experts have come to different conclusions. Some say that you shouldn't have any unvented combustion; others that even relatively large amounts of unvented combustion are harmless, owing to typical rates of air change. To be clear, I'm not saying that you shouldn't use ventless fireplaces (whether they burn alcohol, gel alcohol, natural gas, or propane). These fuels are clean, and they have a proven track record of safety. I am saying that the more you use any unvented product, the more you need to monitor indoor air quality. In fact, the same goes for standard vented combustion appliances, such as wood stoves.
Given the number of variables involved, there's no way that a homeowner can accurately predict the effects of unvented combustion. In most cases, common sense is your best guide. If you're using a gel-alcohol fireplace twice a week, you don't need to worry. If you're using it in a small room for several hours every night, you'll want to remain alert for signs of condensation or soot (depending on the quality and cleanliness of the fuel). Look in corners, behind drapes, or at any other place where pockets of stagnant air build up.
As for bonus heat, Real Flame, a division of Jensen Metal Products, which manufactures a line of gel-alcohol fuel and fireplaces, says its 13-ounce can of fuel costs about $1.05 per hour to burn and can produce about 3000 Btu. To give some perspective, a 13-ounce stick of dry hardwood (roughly equal in size and weight to two issues of PM rolled together) is good for about 6500 Btu, or more than twice the amount of heat energy in a can of gel alcohol. Because you have more control over draft and fuel loading, your actual Btu output will always be much greater with wood than with canned alcohol.
Finally, for those of you who like the idea of a flueless fireplace but are more interested in heat production, I recommend you consider electric or gas (either propane or natural gas) vent-free fireplaces. Both provide an attractive ambience and a significant amount of heat.
These appliances are pretty simple—they're basically a steel box with a ceramic log set, and they burn gelled alcohol in a can. There are also liquid-alcohol fireplaces, many of which have no log set.
The big advantage of these fireplaces is that they don't require a flue, so you can put them nearly anywhere in the house. In some cases, you can also retrofit an existing fireplace so that it will burn gel or liquid alcohol.
The downside? Unvented combustion, whether from a gas kitchen range, a gas-fired ventless fireplace, or even candles, releases pollutants—small amounts of CO, CO2 , water vapor, and particulates—into the indoor air. We're talking about minute quantities of these byproducts, all of which can be harmful to one extent or another if they're allowed to accumulate. Given that the number of times the air will be replenished in a house varies widely—from one or fewer times per hour in a tight house to eight per hour in a leaky one—you're going to have different degrees of combustion-byproduct buildup. It's possible that you'll find small amounts of condensation on cold surfaces and, in the worst case, trace amounts of soot.
Air-quality consultants, building engineers, and combustion-product trade groups have studied the effects of unvented combustion on indoor air quality. As you might imagine, these experts have come to different conclusions. Some say that you shouldn't have any unvented combustion; others that even relatively large amounts of unvented combustion are harmless, owing to typical rates of air change. To be clear, I'm not saying that you shouldn't use ventless fireplaces (whether they burn alcohol, gel alcohol, natural gas, or propane). These fuels are clean, and they have a proven track record of safety. I am saying that the more you use any unvented product, the more you need to monitor indoor air quality. In fact, the same goes for standard vented combustion appliances, such as wood stoves.
Given the number of variables involved, there's no way that a homeowner can accurately predict the effects of unvented combustion. In most cases, common sense is your best guide. If you're using a gel-alcohol fireplace twice a week, you don't need to worry. If you're using it in a small room for several hours every night, you'll want to remain alert for signs of condensation or soot (depending on the quality and cleanliness of the fuel). Look in corners, behind drapes, or at any other place where pockets of stagnant air build up.
As for bonus heat, Real Flame, a division of Jensen Metal Products, which manufactures a line of gel-alcohol fuel and fireplaces, says its 13-ounce can of fuel costs about $1.05 per hour to burn and can produce about 3000 Btu. To give some perspective, a 13-ounce stick of dry hardwood (roughly equal in size and weight to two issues of PM rolled together) is good for about 6500 Btu, or more than twice the amount of heat energy in a can of gel alcohol. Because you have more control over draft and fuel loading, your actual Btu output will always be much greater with wood than with canned alcohol.
Finally, for those of you who like the idea of a flueless fireplace but are more interested in heat production, I recommend you consider electric or gas (either propane or natural gas) vent-free fireplaces. Both provide an attractive ambience and a significant amount of heat.
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