on 9/16/2007 1:22 PM Lee said the following:
Idle question while I'm house hunting. My current row house has a wood
burning fireplace that I have literally never used - I don't want to
deal with lighting a fire and then worrying about it when I want to go
upstairs (and trust me, I'm a worrier). However I do like the *look*
of the fireplace.

I've looked at several houses recently, and thought that if they had
regular fp's I might convert that to gas since I like the idea of
being able to turn it on and off. But some of the houses don't have
any fp's at all. Is it possible to put a decent looking "after market"
fireplace in a house, without having to do a major renovation?
Something that doesn't look like the "fireplace in a box" things that
they sell on HSN? I wouldn't be using it for heating a house (except
maybe if there was a power outage), but as a supplemental heater, sort
of like a pretty space heater.

I guess I'd entertain the idea of electric as well if they look
decent. The last electric one I saw quite a while ago was only a step
above a fan with orange tissue paper!

I haven't even gone to look at any yet. Just thought I'd ask here to
see if this is even practical to consider, or to find out what I
should look for if I go looking.

Thanks

I have a propane fireplace in my "4 Seasons" sunroom, just for a little
extra heat in the winter. Most times it is off, except for early morning
before the sun warms the room up (it is on the south side of the house).
I bought the fireplace insert and the wooden surround at Lowes ( I think
the whole thing cost me $1200). I elected for a vent free unit since the
fireplace is up against the original house wall (the propane clothes
dryer is right behind the fireplace wall and it was easy to connect the
propane. There was no way I could vent it without major renovations, and
I didn't want a vent pipe going through the all aluminum sunroom roof
and up alongside the siding of the two story house, then through the
roof overhang. I did mount a smoke/carbon monoxide detector in the sunroom.

I'm anticipating some negative responses, so for the other readers:.
We've had it for 4 years now and no one died, so save the dire warnings.
If I could have vented it, I would have.

--

Bill
In Hamptonburgh, NY
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