Chimenea - old skool or propane? (1 Viewer)

[Irish]

I'm sitting in front of my wood burning chimenea, knowing this is likely the last time I'll use it as it's rusted/corroded and 100% on its last leg.....

I'm debating my next purchase: replace in kind or switch to one of those fancy propane units. I've had this current chimenea on my back deck for nearly 10 years. It probably gets used two to three dozen times a year, mostly in the spring/fall, when it's comfortable enough here in Jersey in the evening for a nice fire. Chilling with a drink in front of the fire is one my favorite things to do. I'm a former boy scout, and there's something totally zen and peaceful to me about chilling in front of a few burning logs. My wife and kids sometimes join in, but are often put off by the residual campfire smell. So..... in considering replacing the unit, I'm debating the switch to a propane unit. Much easier, click a button and a fire is going. No worries about the smell. No worries about cleaning the thing out. And as such, maybe it'll get used more. But there's still something in me that feels this won't cut it. I do have another fire pit I can put put the yard to scratch that itch if needed, but I dunno. Curious if anyone else has been in a similar boat and can offer some thoughts.....

 

[Coyote]

Wood is lovely but very inefficient, i.e. very polluting for a given amount of heat.
Not an issue if you 're located in a rural place.
However, if you are in an urban or suburban place, opt for the less dirty propane.

 

[DoubleEagle]

Is the heat output comparable?

 

[Irish]

Is the heat output comparable?

Curious about this as well. Based on some limited experience sitting in front a few of these at a buddy's place, they're compatible to a very small fire, but not quite the same. This honestly isn't a huge deal for me, as I usually keep my fires pretty low key....

Wood is lovely but very inefficient, i.e. very polluting for a given amount of heat.
Not an issue if you 're located in a rural place.
However, if you are in an urban or suburban place, opt for the less dirty propane.

Suburban local, imho doesn't really matter either way consisering how often it gets used. Lots of others in the neighborhood with either firepits or wood burning stoves.

 

[BGinGA]

I'm a naturalist; so wood burning all the way (unless you have natural gas stores below your property you can tap into).

 

[FlushBlack]

We are having our yearly verge throwout next week and was going to throw ours out on the pile thinking its on its last legs (12-13yrs), my son moved into man cave a couple of years ago so its been getting a bit of use.
The bottom is still ok, just need to plug where pull-out tray was and we have fire.
Don't mind a bit of smoke in my face, lol back when i was working a trap n line boat in Sams Creek Point Samson, BBQ's with the locals taught me to follow the smoke.
Mozzies are atrocious in that part of the country.
But when this one does go i will be getting another.

 

[Coyote]

Another factor to be taken into account is that, unlike propane, wood cannot explode accidentally.

Beyond that, my 2 cents from poverty-stricken Athens is that, after the financial collapse of 2010, most people could not afford either oil or natural gas for heating and turned to wood or pellets.
In stoves or fireplaces, the latter cruelly ironically meant to be luxury features in appartments.

If 200 people gather in a place and burn wood or coal to survive the cold, it's OK.
If 4 million people gather in a place and do the same, it's close to Hiroshima. The air quality in Athens has gone down to third-world levels

 

[Irish]

So I hemmed and hawed over this for a while, but ultimately decided to get a new propane pit for the deck. Tested it out tonight. Definitely not 100% the same, but it serves it's purpose and is really nice, and I do have a separate wood burning pit out back to occasionally scratch that itch. The kids are already enjoying it