Venting gas fireplace through roof

10 years ago

We have an interior fireplace in the great room of our new home and are opting to vent the gas fireplace. Contractor met with fireplace guys today and called to tell me the vent would be approx 12 feet high on back of house in order to meet necessary roof clearances.

I don't really understand how these things work, and information online is lacking. Is venting straight up the only option since it's not an exterior wall? What are typical clearances for those things?

We have a stupid tall roof which I admittedly didn't spend much time considering in design phase because I was too focused on interior layout. That's another time and another forum chalked up to 'lessons learned.' One of the issues appears to be clearing space for a proper vent!

TIA!

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PRO

Charles Ross Homes

10 years ago

Hi,

First off, kudos for installing a vented fireplace. I never understood the logic of unvented fireplaces which introduce combustion products back into the living space.

Its sounds like you're installing a pre-manufactured fireplace that can be used as a gas-fired or wood-fired unit. Since it can converted to a wood burner, the flue will need to be installed as per the manufacturer's instructions for that application. The height at the termination is likely driven by the building code in your area. Here in Virginia the code dictates that it would need to be 2 ft higher than a point on the building 10 feet away and a minimum of 3 ft.

Best wishes for a successful project.

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Comments (9)

cpartist
10 years ago
Where is the fireplace in relation to the outside? If it's a direct vent gas fireplace, it might be possible to vent it out one of the walls if it's not too far away.
BuildinginTN
Original Author
10 years ago
Ohhh Lily's Mom THANK YOU! I will definitely inquire about your questions. He did say that it would be gas, but work with wood also if we wanted to switch down the line. At least I think that's what I understood and I have been guilty of assuming incorrectly before. :-) He's definitely not pressuring us to switch, but what you're saying about the wood burning may be part of the equation.

I have some work to do. :-)

cpartist - the closest outside wall would have it come out on our patio.
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Springtime Builders
10 years ago
The best option is probably the one you least want to hear. It's 2016, do you really need a fire burning appliance inside your home? Is it for emergency backup heat or ambience? I strongly suggest not doing one at all. They are expensive, rarely used, poor for the health of a home and in your case will introduce undesirable exterior aesthetics.
BuildinginTN
Original Author
10 years ago
Hi springtime - all valid points. Yes ours will be primarily for ambiance. I suppose all things to consider for our next build lol. The horses are too far out of the gate for this one. I'm pretty sure I would need to increase my life insurance if I made that call to my builder. ;-)
cpartist
10 years ago
If it could be converted to wood, it sounds like he's building a masonry fireplace and then it absolutely needs to be vented up through the roof. Then you just insert a gas log set in.
User
10 years ago
Either design the gas vent to offset and rise near the roof ridge so it can terminate 24" above it or design it to terminate on the nearest exterior walL
keywest230
10 years ago
My builder in FL talked me into going electric: year round ambiance, with or without heat at touch of a button, no safety or ventilation issues, easy install, remote control, and some cool lighting effects. (Some might say fake/cheesy, I'm going with cool :)
User
10 years ago
last modified: 10 years ago
"Direct vent" gas fireplaces are sealed systems using a double walled vent pipe and a fixed glass face on the firebox. Combustion air enters through the outer pipe and the inner pipe acts as the vent for hot gases. The vent pipe can terminate through a wall or a roof.