Vent Free Gas Log Dangers

If your gas logs create moisture water is another byproduct of combustion.

Vent free gas log dangers.

Installing a fireplace can often be a major problem due to venting especially with retroactive installations. The district of columbia bans the fireplaces only in bedrooms or bathrooms but virginia and maryland don t restrict them. If the homeowner notices condensation on windows and walls the vent free appliance may be the cause. Excessive water vapor being emitted from your vent free gas fireplace can cause your wallpaper to peel as well as other structural damage.

Vent free technology once considered controversial has now won wide acceptance wrote merv kaufman. During the combustion process moisture is created. Naturally i wanted to read their take on vent free gas fireplaces sometimes called ventless unvented or just plain stupid. If you don t have an existing flue or chimney vent free gas logs may be the better option for you.

Just like a traditional wood burning fire vented gas logs produce carbon monoxide emissions. For this reason they require a chimney or flue to operate. The intake vent draws fresh air into the. Even gases other than carbon monoxide can cause respiratory problems if they re present in large enough quantities and or someone in the home has sensitivity to that gas.

When a 40 000 btu vent free appliance is used to heat it can produce over six gallons of water a day. The fact of the matter is that vent free gas burning fireplaces and other other appliances definitely do emit elemental gasses into the home including carbon dioxide not a huge deal. So do we and some more harmful gas fuel by products like carbon monoxide and sulfur dioxide. There is controversy around vent free gas log fireplaces as people become more concerned about the dangers inherent with such gas powered devices.

A few days ago i ran across an article about gas fireplaces on bob vila s website. Alternatively called unvented vent free or ventless this type of indoor fireplace pipes natural gas or propane into a gas unit with flames running through gaps in artificial ceramic fiber logs. Homeowners are tempted to use the logs continuously which can be a fire hazard. You must remember to open the damper each time you use your unit to allow for proper venting.

A traditional vented gas fireplace view example on amazon fueled by either natural gas or propane has two vents that run to the exterior of the house.