For the past 10 years, gas fireplaces have been the most popular choice for homeowners because of their efficiency. But now, with soaring energy costs and the many new products available, gas has some strong competition.

“Last year there was a big swing back to wood-burning fireplaces – so much so, we sold out of our popular models by mid-November,” says Doug Davie, president of Kastle Fireplace Ltd. “We’re providing the fireplaces for a subdivision in Collingwood and the average house there has three. Fifty per cent of them are wood burning and 50 per cent are gas.”

Kastle says there are “incredible products” now like the wood-pellet stove, which burns a multitude of fuels such as corn, chestnuts, peach pits, cherry pits and wood pellets. They are providing farmers with another market for excess corn, a renewable resource than can reduce dependence on fossil fuels. Davie says that in the U.S. last year, the wood pellet stoves sold out entirely.

Flame-out-of-log technology is another product Davie shows customers. The ceramic burners are concealed in traditional looking logs. Inside, gas is pumped into sand, permitting a random, natural looking flame. However, unlike the more traditional direct-vent gas fireplaces and inserts, which can heat rooms efficiently, the gas-log technology is more for aesthetics.

“The direct-vent inserts can save money for heating but they are more expensive than gas-log fireplaces,” Davie explains. “Gas logs are not efficient and consume a fair bit of gas. They also draw air from the home. Direct vent is sealed combustion, no air is exchanged from the inside to the outside and air is not drawn from the home.”

Davie says the approximate cost of a gas log fireplace would be $2,000 installed and the cost for a direct-vent insert is about $3,700 installed.

One growing trend is to install a plasma TV on the wall above a gas fireplace. However, as Brenda Donner, an interior decorator in Markham points out, “a gas fireplace can lessen the life expectancy of the TV if it’s above the fireplace. But people want that look and I think are prepared to take the chance that it might mean they have to get a new TV sooner than later.”

To combat the excess heat issue, Canadian-owned Town and Country Fireplaces sells only low-heat gas fireplaces. Their newest log set – Tranquility River Rock – features small river rocks and white sand with the flame rising through the rocks. This is one of four log sets available and these can all be interchanged within the six models and four firebox panels offered to customize fireplaces.

Jan Herald, vice-president of Town & Country Fireplaces in Ontario, says his company has the largest direct-vent fireplace on the market, and it won the Most Innovative Product Award at the recent IDEX/NeoCon Show in Toronto. Called the TC54, it is 54 inches wide and 42 inches high.

“Its size gives a very realistic feel,” says Herald, who adds that these are luxury fireplaces with a luxury price. The Tranquility River Rock, as a two-sided fireplace, sells for $8,000 to $10,000 installed.

Town & Country also launched a new remote control, unlike anything else on the market, at the Toronto Interior Design Show.

It’s called the Maestro Control System and Herald says it has “the entire operating system inside the remote control.”

All of Town & Country’s fireplaces from now on will include this remote, which provides functions such as daily and weekly programs, the ability to vary flame height, a child safety lock, thermostat settings and a sleep timer.

You can also turn the fireplace off or on for the season using the remote, and there is a large digital display showing the current temperature and functions you’re using.

Herald says the technology is so advanced that some repairs can be handled by a technician using the remote.

Lynelle Madison, a designer who appears regularly on the W Network’s The Decorating Challenge, runs her own company Design InVision, where she helps clients create fireplaces to enhance their homes.

One of the new products she particularly likes is called Inflame, a vent-free fireplace that can be placed in any room of a house.

“It’s environmentally friendly, humidifies the area and comes with an aromatherapy kit. Using a canister of gel or corn oil, it produces a 25- or 30-centimetre crackling flame. And Inflame works well with shallow or deep mantels,” she says.

“You don’t need gas lines and you can customize the inside. For a traditional look, you can use river rock and for an ultra sleek, contemporary look, you can use fireballs.”

Once the fireplace is in place, the mantel and surround must be chosen.

“I’m seeing more over-mantels where the mantel goes right to the ceiling,” Madison says. “Some people have a large brick pattern for a traditional look and others go for something like black onyx to the ceiling, with no mantel, for a more modern feel.”

She says that although the internal surround is usually tile or granite, some people are choosing to customize their fireplace with stone, mirrors, red onyx and even a semi-translucent material that can be lit from behind.

Donner is seeing a lot of interior design clients choosing natural materials such as stone, glass tiles and even stainless steel for surrounds.

“The look is very personal,” she says. “A lot of clients are liking a clean, simple style.”

Bette Jane Jelly, who runs inside.out.design in Toronto, says that “whether you are looking for centuries-old traditional, modern or classic, ensure the details are in keeping with the look you want to achieve for the style of your home.

“Be selective in choosing timeless colours – black, brown, grey, sand, cream or white,” she says. “You don’t want to be replacing the hearth and surround just because you have tired of the colour in a few years’ time.”

To see some of the new fireplaces available, check out www.kastlefireplace.com which has a link to manufacturer’s web pages.

You can call Kastle Fireplaces at 416-289-0009. Lynelle Madison can be reached at 416-485-9382 and you can visit her at www.designinvision.com. Brenda Donner can be contacted at 905-947-0726 and Bette Jane Jelly is at 416-253-5330 or at www.insideoutdesign.ca. To find a Town & Country dealer, visit www.townandcountryfireplaces.net.

source : www.thestar.com