Before humans learned to make fire, every day was a challenge of survival.
Today, fire use is an option for most Americans. But even if it isn’t a necessity, there is still something appealing about bringing fire into our homes.
“Everybody needs a flame in their house. It’s a focal point,” says Lester Bowman of Bowman’s Stove & Patio (www.bowmansstove.com) in Ephrata.
The ever-popular way that homeowners choose to enjoy a fire is with fireplaces, either wood-burning, natural gas or pellet-burning. Free-standing stoves and outdoor fire pits are also popular. Whether one chooses natural gas over wood- or pellet-burning fireplaces usually depends on the area in which one lives.
The choices don’t stop with fuel options, however. Fireplaces have gotten a makeover, especially natural gas versions. In fact, some have such a contemporary style that the name “fireplace” doesn’t seem to fit.
Modern gas fireplaces are increasing in popularity in this area, says Lester Bowman, but they are found more on the West Coast.
Contemporary gas fireplaces often are linear, meaning longer and shorter. “These fireplaces are 3 to 5 feet long and only about 18 inches high,” says Dustin Bowman, Lester’s son. These fireplaces also can have ceramic black backgrounds that reflect the flames rather than the brick of a traditional fireplace.
With gas fireplaces, there are now many choices other than fake logs. Glass beads, marbles or crystals of various shapes and colors are popular, as are manufactured river rocks, manufactured driftwood or metal tubes. Some fireplaces are now positioned several feet above the floor, on or in the wall, almost as a piece of art.
The full-view fireplace insert is another trend in gas fireplaces, says Lester Bowman. It gives a more traditional fireplace look. With more sophisticated technology, the flames look more like a wood-burning fireplace, he says.
A relatively new addition to gas fireplace technology is the use of a remote to control temperature, flame height and lights in the back, says Lester Bowman, which can be used alone as a night light.
At Bowman Stove & Patio, natural gas fireplaces are most popular. “In the 2012-2013 heating season, we installed about 120 gas inserts and fireplaces compared to about 40 wood,” says Dustin Bowman. But the numbers can change year to year. In some years, wood inserts can be almost equal to the number of gas inserts and fireplaces, he says.
Gas is less work than wood, says Dustin Bowman. With gas, you can turn the fireplace on with a remote and it needs only occasional cleaning and service, he says. With wood, you need to cut and split logs if you don’t buy them pre-split, and they need to be loaded into the fire fairly often. Also, ashes need to be emptied.
With the abundance of natural gas and a now lower price in Pennsylvania, Dustin Bowman says, the cost is so close to the price of pellets that people are choosing natural gas over pellets. “Who wants to have the extra work if the cost is about the same?” he asks.
Rick Soccio of A.E.S. Hearthplace Stoveshop (www.aeshearthplace.com), with locations in Camp Hill and Newville, says that traditional-style fireplaces are still his best sellers. In the Newville shop, wood and pellet fireplaces or inserts are most popular, he says, “with people looking to save money.”
The contemporary linear fireplace sells more in the Camp Hill market, Soccio says, where about 60 percent of his fireplace sales are for the gas version. Of those customers who buy gas fireplaces, he says, “25 percent are looking for a piece of artwork.”
Soccio says he is seeing an increase in customers choosing the contemporary styles of fireplaces, but overall, about 90 percent choose a traditional style and about 10 percent choose modern.
The exterior of modern fireplaces is quite different, Soccio says, with more stainless steel or bright colors used. Lester Bowman says there is a huge selection of custom fronts for fireplaces, but polished brass is no longer popular. And as with Soccio, Bowman says that in his shop, traditional styles are more popular than modern.
Another change over the past few years, says Soccio, is the use of electronic ignition systems in gas fireplaces. This is more efficient, he says since you don’t have a pilot system burning gas at all times.
Fire made early humans feel safe when they heard the howling of unknown predators. It still provides a feeling of safety when howling winds batter shutters and windows in winter.
Quite possibly, our primal connection to fire will never be extinguished.
