Should I get a freestanding gas stove or a wood stove?
In Asheville, either works well — you're on natural-gas mains and 15 minutes from our Emma Road showroom, so both a freestanding gas stove and a wood stove are easy to install and service. Pick wood if you want grid-independent primary heat for those 20-degree spring nights; pick gas if you'd rather skip the wood pile.
Two very different Asheville housing stories
The right call here often comes down to your block. In Montford and North Asheville, plenty of homes still have an original masonry chimney with a sound flue, which makes setting an EPA wood stove like Regency's Cascades F1500 straightforward — 78% efficiency, up to 55,000 BTU, and heat you own outright when the grid quits. Newer South Asheville construction rarely has a chimney at all, and that's where a direct-vent gas stove shines: it vents out a sidewall, needs no masonry, and lights at the flip of a switch.
Heat-serious, either way
Asheville sits at 2,134 feet, and nights stay in the 20s well into spring, so this isn't a decorative decision — you want an appliance that actually heats. A wood stove gives you the most raw output and total independence from the power company. A freestanding gas stove with battery-backup or millivolt ignition still lights and throws heat when the lines are down — power-optional heat, without splitting or hauling. Whichever way you lean, connecting the fuel is licensed gas work in North Carolina, and we pull the Buncombe County permit and pressure-test the line.
Come see both burning
Because we're headquartered right here at 629 Emma Road in West Asheville, you can stand in front of a lit wood stove and a lit gas stove in the same afternoon and feel the heat difference before you commit to either. No pressure and no upselling — we'd rather match you to the right appliance than the most expensive one, and we'll tell you plainly which suits your room, your chimney, and how you actually live. Free in-home assessment: (828) 545-0525.
Fireplace help in Asheville
We install and service fireplaces throughout Asheville and the rest of Buncombe County — we're headquartered right here.
Related questions
- Wood stove vs pellet stove — which should I get?
- Should I get a gas fireplace or a wood-burning fireplace?
- Is a gas fireplace or a pellet stove better for heating a home?
- Is it cheaper to heat your house with wood or with gas?
- Which requires more maintenance, a gas fireplace or a wood-burning fireplace?

