Guilt-Free Fireplaces

By Sophie Overton

Ah, what could be better in winter than gathering the family around a cozy wood-burning fire? According to the folks at the Wood Heat Organization (WHO), a fire is “soothing to the spirit.” Alas, that autumn-scented smoke curling from the chimney is a sign that your hearth is burning “dirty.”

So what are the guilt-free fireplaces?

Wood
Firewood can be harvested poorly, burned dirty and its heat wasted. Not to worry. The new technologically advanced fireplaces that are certified low emission by the EPA can burn with no visible smoke and generate 90 percent less pollution than those of yore.

Believe it or not: “Wood is the most accessible and affordable renewable energy resource for home heating in much of North America whose use can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions because its net carbon dioxide emissions are far below those of all other fuels,” according to WHO.

Proprietor of Sag Harbor Fireplace, Michael Scanlon, recommends the Phenix Green series from Wittus: “high-efficiency fireplaces that maximize the heat output.” These are what he calls “prefab” fireplaces – factory built of lightweight metal, as opposed to the traditional masonry built right into the home. “Demand for the newer prefab fireplace is picking up.”

These newfangled versions “are designed to work like a wood stove where it takes less air to burn the fire and takes less hot air from your house.” In traditional fireplaces, he says, “all the air in the house goes up the chimney in a couple of hours.” But the new high-efficiency fireplaces have catalytic combustors and baffle systems “to re-burn the smoke and unburned gasses before they escape up the chimney.” While it might soothe our souls, “all that great smelling smoke is unburned carbon, wasted energy.”

Not only do such fireplaces as the Phenix burn clean, they also generate a lot of heat: up to 3,000 square feet of toasty air. Scanlon is also a fan of Renaissance Fireplaces. The Linear 50 model allows for a beautiful wall-to-wall fire and has an air wash system that keeps the glass doors from becoming blackened.

Gas
Today’s gas fireplaces truly resemble their wood-burning cousins from their glowing embers and dancing flames to their realistic looking charred logs. Not only do they look pretty they also provide lots of warm air and radiant heat. “Most gas fireplaces are state of the art,” says Scanlon. And natural gas emits less toxic material than even the cleanest wood stoves. Town & Country’s gas fireplaces include 10 fireplace models made with such stylish ersatz fuel sources as ceramic logs, river rock or glass. The Novus nXt gas fireplace by Heatilator combines contemporary style with traditional brick panels, and can be customized with different styles and finishes.

The bad news about gas is that chances are about one in three that it has been fracked.

Ethanol
Ethanol fireplaces burn very cleanly, producing primarily water vapor and a little bit of CO2. They also produce a flame without any flue or chimney, keeping the heat from escaping.

EcoSmart Ventless Fireplaces, fuelled by bioethanol, are hand-crafted freestanding pieces of “fire furniture.” Portable, so that they can be placed just about anywhere in a room, each line is designed by a different designer, each with a distinct aesthetic vision. “EcoSmart Fire brings an open fire back to the masses and is fantastically green,” says Australian architect John Dimopoulos, who created the company’s Zeta. “I love the fact that you can play with the framing of fire in a formal way, using materials that complement the mesmerizing, kaleidoscopic effect of fire – all possible because you don’t need a flue.”