How to Put in a Gas Log Set for a Fireplace

RON HAZELTON:
Welcome to the fireplace tales - a rather sooty story of a man, his wife and their gas log set.  It all began when -
LYNN:
In order to light this fireplace, you have to stick your hand in the fireplace to light it.
RON HAZELTON:
Honey, that's no big deal. I just reach in here -
[BOTH SPEAK AT ONCE]
LYNN:
Yeah, it is a big deal.  You remember the last time, when you singed all your hair off the hand?
RON HAZELTON:
[LAUGHS] That scared the wee-wee out of me.
  LYNN:
Oh, is the gas still on?
RON HAZELTON:
I guess you could say, Lynn, that was a point well made.
RON HAZELTON:
So what's the moral of this story?  Well, I guess you could say it's that when your wife suggests you might want to update your gas log set, with one that doesn't require you to put your hand inside to light it, you should listen.  I did. And that's why I'm gonna replace this gas log set with one that's state of the art.

I start by shutting off the gas to the fireplace. Then remove the artificial logs. And take out the grate.  Next, I disconnect the gas line.  Remove the old burner. And, last of all, clean out the firebox.  Well, the fireplace is all cleaned out.

And I'm about to put in my new gas log set. It has 3 components. The burner, the logs and this wireless remote control.  More about this a little bit later on.  Right now, I want to start by putting in the burner and attaching it to the bottom of the firebox.

The first step is to apply pipe thread sealant. Then attach the gas supply line to the burner and snug the connection up tightly. This system has remote control electronic ignition. The small receiver simply plugs into the control box.  Next, I set the burner in position, use a masonry bit to drill holes into the brick on the bottom of the firebox. And finally, put in masonry screws to secure the burner in place.

Well the log set's installed.  I've attached the gas line.  Now I want to check to see if there are any leaks. So I'm gonna turn the gas back on.  And I'm gonna take this bottle of filthy water, just dishwashing detergent in water here.

And I'm gonna spray it on all the connections and fittings down here.  Now if there were a leak, I'd see some fairly substantial soap bubbles.  Hopefully I won't find any.  Now for what is probably gonna be the most fun part of this job: putting the actual logs on the burner.

Now these are made of concrete and they have to go in in a very specific way.  But it's easy, because the bottoms of the logs have holes, and the burner down here has pins. So all I've gotta do is match them up.

Well the burner's installed, the logs are in place. But what comes next is what's going to make this look like a convincing wood-burning fire.  It's called an accessory kit, and it's an option from the manufacturer of this log set, Empire Comfort Systems.

Let me show you how it works.  First I sprinkle small blackened coals that look like remnants of earlier fires. Next I drop in a few of these ash-coated coals for added realism. Then place some small partially burned pieces of wood around the base of the logs.

All of these materials, of course, are non-combustible.  Finally, small pieces of rock wool are placed over special ports in the burner. When the log set is operating, these tufts of rock will glow like hot coals. Pretty convincing, isn't it?

And you know the best thing of all?  I can turn that fireplace off and on from right here in my easy chair, using this remote control. And this is also a thermostat. By presetting the room temperature I want, this will automatically turn the log set on and off, keeping the room at just the temperature I want it.

Well that's it from Fireplace Theatre.  Join us next time for tales of the andiron.
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