Page 25 2023 Spring Home and Garden LINCOLN DAILY NEWS April/May 2023 designed and contractor built the cost range will go from $1,500 to $10,000 or more. Fireplace costs will also vary according to the type of fuel you will use. Gas fireplaces built with high chimneys will cost more than a brick fireplace for burning wood. Wood burning fireplaces have their pros and cons. First, wood is somehow more romantic, more intimate than a gas fireplace. It is almost like wood is the real thing, and a gas fireplace is a lessor imitation. But there are also some big disadvantages to wood fireplaces. First, they require wood, a natural resource, but not always easy to find. Some may find that they limit themselves to the number of times in a year they use their outdoor fireplace because they must purchase the wood, stack the wood, keep it dry, and clean up the area after they bring it all in. Wood also creates ash that needs to be cleaned out of the fire box of the fireplace on a regular basis. Once that ash is removed, then there is a need to find a good location to dispose of it. A gas fireplace utilizing natural gas that is already running into your home anyway assures a constant supply of fuel. Though when gas prices are high, you may again want to be conservative on the number of fires you light each season. The biggest advantage to a gas fireplace is the convenience. There is very little cleaning involved, you don’t have to have storage space for your fuel supply, and you don’t have to dispose of ash. And, if looking at the resale value of your home, gas fireplaces have a higher return on investment. Bear in mind that building a fireplace, or a fire pit of any kind is going to be subject to local ordinances and zoning laws. In almost all cases, your fire pit or fireplace will be considered an open fire. There are rules as to where you can have an open fire in relation to structures as well as property lines. Knowing this ahead of time will help you figure out whether a fireplace or pit is even an option on your property. Talking to a city zoning officer or the county zoning officer ahead of your investment will help you to determine what you can do safely and without consequence. Keeping to the topic of safety, the final advantage to a fireplace over a pit is the safety. The fireplace, though still an open fire, is more contained than a pit because it has three walls that will help to contain the flames as well as the sparks from burning logs. Once you have done your due diligence in investigating your safety zones, thinking out which is best for you, a fire pit or fireplace, then you may want to spend some time searching online for experience videos. Choose a few to watch through and see what is being built, who is building it and how complicated it is going to be. Continued --
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