What's the mechanical difference between a natural gas and a propane fireplace?
On Leicester's large rural properties, propane from a tank is common and wood heat is popular — natural-gas mains don't reach most of these lots. So a gas fireplace here is usually jetted for LP: smaller orifices, a different pilot, and a regulator set for propane's higher pressure, versus the wider jetting a natural-gas unit would use.
Propane, and heat that doesn't need a circuit board
Some remote Leicester properties out toward Sandy Mush have limited electrical capacity, which makes the ignition system worth thinking through alongside the fuel. A millivolt gas fireplace runs on the tiny current its own pilot generates — no circuit board, no house power — so it keeps heating on either fuel when the grid or a thin electrical service can't help. Propane is heavier than air and settles low if it leaks, so we install, regulate, and leak-test LP piping with that behavior in mind.
The tank we coordinate with your supplier; the regulator, hookup, and pressure test are our licensed gas work.
Cold hollows reward a correct burn
Cold-air drainage runs Leicester's rural valleys 5 to 8 degrees colder than Asheville on clear winter nights, so these hearths work — and a burner jetted for the wrong fuel wastes propane exactly when you're leaning on it. We verify the fuel, jet the appliance for it, and permit the line through Buncombe County.
Call (828) 545-0525 for a free in-home assessment 15 minutes west of the showroom.
Fireplace help in Leicester
We install and service fireplaces throughout Leicester and the rest of Buncombe County — just 15 minutes west from our Asheville-area showroom.
Related questions
- What is an orifice, and why are natural gas and propane orifices different?
- What does a natural gas to propane conversion kit actually change?
- Why do natural gas and propane flames look different?
- What gas pressure does a fireplace need — what is manifold pressure?
- Does high elevation affect how a gas fireplace burns or how much heat it makes?