How Much Propane Does a Gas Fireplace Use?

Warm Up with Efficiency—and Cozy Charm

Nothing adds more cozy charm than a fireplace. But when it comes to adding warmth and style without the hassle of ashes, smoke and embers, a gas fireplace steals the show. It’s no wonder propane hearths and log sets are so popular: You can opt for a wide range of styles and designs to suit your taste and the design of your home, and they can be installed almost anywhere, with no chimney required. That’s not to mention the convenience of push-button start and stop. Add it all up, and a propane-fueled fireplace is a great option for supplemental heat that looks as good as it works.

Not surprisingly, most customers want to know how much propane a gas fireplace will use. But that’s a tricky question: Using your fireplace every night will burn more propane than if you just light it on weekends. At the same time, if your home is well-insulated, you may not need to turn it up as high. (By the way, that’s another great benefit of a gas fireplace over burning a log fire: you can control the level of the flames.)

Instead, you should think about a gas fireplace like other heating equipment in your home and evaluate it based on efficiency. The good news is that propane fireplaces run at about 80 percent efficiency—that’s four or five times more efficient than a wood-burning fireplace.

Why Are Propane Fireplaces so Efficient?

The lack of a chimney is a big reason that a propane gas fireplace is more efficient than a wood-burning hearth. A wood fire needs a chimney to burn safely, but as much as 90 percent of the heat is sucked up the chimney along with smoke and combustion gasses. That means only 10 percent of the heat is warming your room. With direct vent or ventless propane options, all the heat stays in the room, instead of going up the chimney.

A propane insert using direct venting only needs a single dual-chambered pipe directly through a wall to the outdoors. The pipe simultaneously draws air for the fire from the outdoors, while it expels the fire’s combustion byproducts to the outside.

Ventless models have a regulator that produces a fine gas-air mix that allows the gas to burn cleanly. You don’t even need a chimney or a flue.

Another feature that improves efficiency are multispeed blowers that push warm air into the room, providing better, more even heat—especially in larger spaces like great rooms.

More Efficient for You

A propane fireplace is not only more efficient at producing heat, it’s less work for you. With a wood fire, you must pay constant attention, adding logs and poking embers, or your fire will die down and your room will get cold. With today’s propane logs, a remote control and a thermostat lets you dial up the heat you want—which is great not only for controlling temperature, but for controlling your propane use.

Lastly, they let you spend time enjoying time with family and friends. You can focus on your loved ones, not the fire—how efficient is that? Plus, with a propane hearth to gather round, you may spend more time together!

Warm Up with Propane

A propane gas hearth or fireplace is easy to install, with no major construction involved.

Contact us for more information today—and have a cozy gas fireplace in time for the holidays.