Converting a wood fireplace to a gas one.

[Lt.Spears]

Anyone done this before?

What should i be looking at for a relative cost?

[sec304]

I am also interested in this!

[prarieboy]

It depends on a couple of things.

If you have a gas line at the Fireplace.

If you want a blower you need electricity.

What model you choose.

If you have Gas and Electrical I would budget $3500 to $5000

We just had this done last winter.

Edit. We really like it. Puts out a lot of heat in the basement.

[HockeyPuck]

I just did this a couple of months ago.

I cheaped out and bought used on kijiji. Probably not the best thing to do. PB is right, you have to have a gas line and electrical run to your fireplace.

What I did was I bought the used unit off of Kijiji, found a brick layer to reduce the size of the opening - the woodburning fireplace opening was enormous. What I didn't realize was that we were supposed to remove the old flue and the opening the bricklayer made was not supposed to be a tightfit. I probably spent less than $1000 by doing this on the cheap, but I definitely would not buy used next time.

$3500-$5000 sounds about right.

[Canada 02]

Sad that wood-burning fireplaces are going away. That's all we had growing up. I love the look, sound and smell of burning wood

[Lt.Spears]

Originally Posted by Canada 02

Sad that wood-burning fireplaces are going away. That's all we had growing up. I love the look, sound and smell of burning wood

They tend to be a lot of work, i love the smell and the sounds of wood as i grew up with it, but i just think Gas is easier.

There is no Gas/Electric running to the existing fireplace.

[Red Slinger]

We had two wood burning replaced with gas inserts a couple years ago. For both the inserts and the installation it cost us about $7500, if I recall correctly. We were very happy with the results. We ended up going with Woods/BBQ Galore. I understand that once or twice a year they have decent sale prices on a package and a deferred payment plan.

[Smartcar]

Originally Posted by Lt.Spears

What should i be looking at for a relative cost?

It will likely be cheaper than installing a gas fireplace in a new location. I did it maybe 10 years ago for about $1k, the unit was about $700, flexible b vent up the existing chimney flue, short gas line/electrical from the basement, finished around the opening with tile. Installed it myself, just got a plumber to do the gas line.

[darklord700]

On the same note, I'm about to finish my basement. Should I put in an electric or gas fireplace? I hardly use the fireplace so it'll be just for the decor and future resale purposes. Gas will be better but I doubt people will pay more for the house just because I have a gas instead of electric fireplace.

[Smartcar]

Any place where you could use the extra heat, a gas fireplace is great, and a lot cheaper to run than electric fireplaces, make sure you get the ones with a circulating fan. Personally, I like the look of real flames better, too.

Basements tend to get cold in winter, I would recommend a gas fireplace. Also, if it's new, you may not have to run a flue to the roof, the direct-vent models vent out the wall so the installation cost may not be that much more.

[sec304]

BUMP! I'm looking to convert my wood burning fp to gas, any recommendations?

[Locke]

Originally Posted by sec304

BUMP! I'm looking to convert my wood burning fp to gas, any recommendations?

Have you considered just stuffing a gas line into it?

Full disclosure, I am not a gas-fitter and I have no idea what I'm talking about.

[bossy22]

I like wood, so I would get a gas starter installed. But that's me.

[Northendzone]

this is an easy conversion for someone who is about a 4/10 on the home handyman scale.

two or three hour job tops - what could possible go wrong.

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