The Fire Is So Inviting

When it’s time to get cozy by the fire, how do the logs stack up?

November/December 2003
By Anastasia White Wolf 
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Wood-Burning Stove/Fireplace

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PRO:

  • Provides light and warmth even when the electricity goes out.
  • Creates the best ambiance, ­complete with crackling sounds and woody scent.
  • Newer, high-efficiency wood-burning stoves can recycle gas and smoke, creating more heat, consuming less wood, and emitting fewer pollutants.

CON:

  • Produces pollution in the form of particulates, greenhouse gases, and other harmful emissions such as carbon monoxide, dioxins, and formaldehyde.
  • Many cities enforce wood-burning bans to reduce air pollution.
  • Wood for stoves and fireplaces wastes trees and can cost more than fuels such as natural gas.
  • Ash and soot requires cleanup.

Wood-Pellet Stove

PRO:

  • Burns clean and creates heat efficiently. The EPA does not regulate wood-pellet stoves because they perform so well.
  • Pellets are made from furniture and wood manufacturing byproducts including compacted sawdust, wood chips, bark, agricultural crop waste, and waste paper. This helps save trees.
  • A thermostat regulates the stove’s temperature so it burns longer with infrequent refueling (about once a day).

CON:

  • Depends on electricity for running the fan, controls, and pellet feeder, so it’s not dependable during power outages.
  • Requires yearly maintenance and possibly expensive repairs.
  • Pellets can cost more than a cord of wood. Plus, you pay for the electricity to run the stove’s mechanical parts.

Natural Gas Fireplace

PRO:

  • Gas is clean burning and ­produces few greenhouse gas emissions.
  • Costs less than logs or pellets.
  • Works during power outages and is convenient because there’s no refueling, carrying wood, or cleaning up ash. Just flip a switch, and you have a flame.

CON:

  • Natural gas prices are rising.
  • Natural gas is a non-renewable resource with limited supplies.
  • Although it emits no particulates, a natural gas fireplace creates greenhouse gases such as methane through combustion. Drilling for gas disrupts pristine wilderness and wildlife habitat.
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