Does an electric fireplace draw electricity when it's switched off or in standby?
A tiny bit — an electric fireplace pulls a small phantom, or standby, load (usually a watt or two) when it's off but still plugged in, powering the remote receiver, display, and standby circuit. It's negligible on your bill. The real draw comes only when the heater runs — around 1,500 watts on high, versus just the LEDs in flame-only mode.
Standby sips, heating gulps
Plugged in but switched off, an electric fireplace draws a tiny standby load — usually a watt or two — to keep the remote receiver, display, and on/off circuit alive. It's the same phantom draw as a TV waiting for its remote, and it's nothing on your bill. The real electricity only moves when you ask for heat: the heating element pulls around 1,500 watts on high, about 5,000 BTU of supplemental warmth. Run it in flame-only mode and you're powering just the LED flame — barely anything at all.
Is it worth unplugging?
Because the standby draw is so small, unplugging an electric fireplace to save money isn't worth the hassle — you'd save pennies over a year. If the unit is going to sit unused for a whole season, or you're closing up a cabin, cutting power at the plug or the breaker is fine and adds a little peace of mind. A surge protector is a sensible touch too, since the electronics don't love our mountain lightning storms. Beyond that, leave it be.
The one honest limit
What we won't do is let you think an electric fireplace is more than it is. It's a clean, vent-free, install-almost-anywhere source of ambiance and up to roughly 400 square feet of supplemental heat — the Dimplex flame is the most convincing on the market, and its flame-only summer mode is genuinely nice. But it runs on electricity, which means it's dead the moment the power is, and it will never heat a whole house or serve as outage backup. For grid-down heat you want gas or wood — see our [electric-vs-gas-fireplace](/guides/electric-vs-gas-fireplace) guide, or visit the Asheville showroom to see the flame in person. Call (828) 545-0525.
Related questions
- Why does my electric fireplace smell like something burning when the heater runs?
- Can I run an electric fireplace off a portable generator during an outage?
- How much electricity does a pellet stove use while it's running?
- Does electronic ignition really use less gas than a standing pilot light?
- Can a pellet stove run on a generator or battery backup when the power is out?
- How do I know if my house has natural gas or propane?
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