the power went off at a buddy's home when we had a tree breaking, wet snow fall a few weeks ago.i called and they were fine.they had a gas fireplace that was keeping the house warm.
now as my only urban preparedness worry is the power going off and making our home into a Minnesota icebox i was thinking--generator--power up the gas furnace fan and a couple lights and i'm good.the draw back is the price,fuel,running it outside,electric change overs..so on.well my friends fireplace gave me a thought,how about buying a portable gas fireplace?
if the power go's off and the city says expect days without it in subzero temps i could remove the line to the gas dryer and hook up the fireplace in the basement and heat the house that way.i have replaced the gas line to the dryer and did plenty of hammer and wrench work when i was younger so i know my way around tools and the change over would be much safer and faster than using a generator that i would have to go out into the cold to refuel and fool with the main power box--so on..i know they make unvented fireplaces,the gas dryer burns without a vent so no problem there and all we would want is to keep the place in the 50's.we have plenty of camping lamps and don't need power for anything else..

I'm no expert on this, but there seem to be a couple red flags in your idea - rerouting gas lines on the fly and not venting the fireplace is another. If you buy a gas fireplace, what prevents you from installing it and running a dedicated gas line to it in the first place?

We have a gas fireplace that heats our main living area through the winter, its pretty nice and has kept us warm through power outages, but it vents out the chimney and has a professionally installed and city permitted gas line run to it. The installation was fairly straightforward and cheap, I would recommend that whatever dealer you buy from recommend a licensed gas mechanic to install and make sure your home owners insurance and local permit agency are happy. Out here insurers can get cranky if an unlicensed gas line starts a fire, and home buyers can hold off on a sale if any gas or electrical work was done without a required permit.

Also get a model with piezo electronic ignition to ensure you can easily light the gas fireplace if the power is out.

I just lit my gas fireplace for winter and I finally noticed the statement on the equipment placard - "Approved as a vented decorative gas appliance - not a source of heat" (I have only been in my home twenty plus years). Oh well, all these years we have been using it to take the chill off of our family room, where we spend about 80 percent of our time. I instructed DW that she could only enjoy the appearance of the dancing flames, and that under no circumstances could we benefit from the alleged incidental warmth.

I must say I don't get it. Of course, the dratted thing is a source of heat.....

> I instructed DW that she could only enjoy the appearance of the dancing flames

Just get a DVD of a fireplace for your wall-mounted flatscreen TV. :->

> the gas dryer burns without a vent

I have some doubts about that.

The "source of heat" designation has to do with the device fulfilling the minimum requirement as heat source according to building code, home loan, and HUD requirements. Houses have to have heat and the designated device/s have to meet requirements for minimum heat output and suitability.

These things have to be defined in regulations. Otherwise unscrupulous builders would slip in a couple of candles and a pack of matches, call it 'heated', and pocket the difference. Candles are certainly a source of heat, they get hot, but nobody would consider them as suitable for routine residential heating.

Most gas fireplace inserts are essentially decorative. They are designed to present flames and a touch of warmth as an aesthetic enhancement. They are optimized to do this while saving fuel. Total heat output may be warming enough for sex on a bearskin rug on a snowy night as long as the house is already warm but it doesn't put out enough heat to keep a room, much less an entire house, even moderately warm when outdoor temperatures drop.

It is an oddity to learn that not all heat sources are legally 'sources of heat' but once you understand the label is referencing a legal requirement that houses have sufficient heat to keep people relatively safe, as defined by code, it makes sense.

Phil..the only vent from our gas dryer is the one that takes the warm damp air outside,in the winter the warm are is rerouted into the basement via one of those gizmos that attaches to the vent pipe.we had the city come thru the house a few days ago for a energy audit and the dryer along with the furnace and water heater got a clean bill of health.we got a bunch of new style light bulbs.bad new was that when they turned on a huge fan to pull cold air from outside we had nasty leaks around the book cases i put thru the drywall and into the attic in a second floor hallway----

Hi, Canoedogs,

My suspicion is that the warm damp air your dryer is exhausting to the outside also contains the CO and CO2 from the burner. I'll be happy to be wrong.

If you have the installation manual for your dryer, I'd be interested in what it says about exhausting the dryer indoors. Do you have that section? (Assuming I'm understanding correctly that in the winter, you divert the outside exhaust to in your basement?)