Two main types of fireplaces use gas logs – vented and ventless (vent-free). Understanding the difference between vented and ventless gas fireplaces will help you choose the best gas logs for your home. If you’re unsure about whether or not your fireplace is vented or ventless, here’s a quick overview of the different types of fireplaces for gas logs.
Vented gas fireplaces have a chimney with a damper installed to allow air to flow up and out of the chimney. Vented fireplaces give you the option to use gas logs or real wood logs in your fireplace. A vented fireplace is also capable of handling both vented and ventless gas logs as long as you can close your chimney damper and you’re set up to burn gas. Many times, a vented gas fireplace is a wood-burning fireplace that has been converted to burn either natural gas or liquid propane gas .
Ventless gas fireplaces don’t have a chimney with a damper and are generally used for heating purposes. A ventless fireplace means there is no chimney or damper for the heat to escape up, so it radiates back into the room where you’re burning ventless gas logs. You can only use ventless or vent-free gas logs in a ventless fireplace as they are not equipped with a chimney and damper to allow for proper airflow and exhaust.
Vented gas logs emit smoke and other byproducts as a result of burning while ventless gas logs are smoke-free and highly fuel-efficient. Vented gas logs offer a more realistic fire in your fireplace and ventless gas logs are designed to help supplement heating. Understanding the difference between vented and vent-free gas logs as well as the difference between types of gas fireplaces will help narrow down your choices so you can buy the perfect log set to meet your needs.
Whether or not to use vented or unvented gas logs depends on personal preferences and the type of fireplace you have. Regardless of the type of gas fireplace logs you go with, you’ll still need to take certain measurements before you’re able to choose the right size logs.
