If you’re living in a small space or an apartment, you might be struggling to find a fireplace that will work well in the space you have. Due to limited space and venting requirements, a traditional fireplace may not be a viable option for you. However, that doesn’t mean you won’t be able to snuggle up in front of a cosy fire in the winter, you still have options. It just means you’re going to have to do your homework and shop around for a fireplace that is designed to work well in a smaller home or apartment. To help you, here is a guide to finding the best fireplace for apartments and small spaces.
Things to think about:
Before you start looking at fires, there are some things you need to think about first:
- Fuel type: what type of fuel do you want your fireplace to have? For a gas fire, you’ll need a gas line, and for something like a wood-burning fire, you’ll need a chimney. Usually, in an apartment or a small home you won’t have a chimney or a gas line, so something like an electric fire would be better suited to your needs.
- Heat output: if you’re in an apartment or a small home, you won’t need a big heat output, but you may need the ability to increase and decrease the heat output to keep yourself comfortable. With something like a wood-burning fireplace, you won’t be able to control the heat output as much.
- Size: the size of your fireplace needs to work well in the space you have available. You need to measure up the space you intend to place the fireplace and make sure you buy something that fits comfortably. Although a fireplace can be the centrepiece of the room, you don’t want it to dominate the room completely.
- Design: your fireplace needs to work well with your home décor, it needs to look aesthetically appealing in the room.
- Installation and maintenance: some fireplaces, like an electric one, are easy to install and maintain, however, some fireplaces (such as gas fires) need to be installed and regularly maintained by a qualified professional.
Suitable fireplaces for small spaces
Fortunately, there are some fireplaces that has been designed to work perfectly in small spaces, taking up little to no floor space, with a heat source you can vary depending on your needs and in a range of styles and designs. These include:
Wall mount fireplaces
As the name suggests, these fireplaces can be mounted onto your wall, taking up no floor space whatsoever. They have a sleek design, a fireplace screen, and run on electricity alone. These fireplaces are easy to use, they are energy-efficient, generate no emissions, no combustion gases, no noise and they generate heat instantly. You won’t need to have a wall mount fireplace professionally installed, nor will you need a chimney or a gas line, so installation is much cheaper than other fireplace options.
Corner fireplaces
If you have a little bit of extra space in your apartment or small home, you might want to consider a corner fireplace. Unlike traditional fireplaces which take up the bulk of the wall, corner fireplaces are designed to wedge into any 90-degree angle, taking up limited floor space. Not only are these fireplaces excellent for space saving, but they are elegant and cosy, and they come in a range of designs and styles.
Media console fireplaces
Practical and sophisticated, media console fireplaces are and all-in-one addition to your home. They provide a warm and cosy glow which heats the entire room, and they also offer plenty of storage and space for media entertainment. Sleek in design, media console fireplaces balance style with practicality perfectly, they come in a range of sizes enabling you to find one that fits in your room, and they include flat tops and shelves which you can use to stack game consoles, DVD’s and anything else you need to store.
Vent-free gas fireplaces
For a vent-free gas fireplace, you’ll need a gas line and a professional to install the fireplace for you. Vent-free gas fireplaces are perfect for any sized room, they are available in different styles and they have a sustained heat output.
Freestanding fireplaces
Freestanding fireplaces can be electric or gas. If you choose gas, a qualified professional will need to install this for you. As freestanding fireplaces use electric or gas instead of wood, placement is much more flexible. You’ll need to give up some wall and some floor space to have a freestanding fireplace, but it has the potential to change the ambience in your room entirely.
In addition to creating heat when you need it most, a fireplace creates a cosy and warm environment giving the house a homely and welcoming ambience. As well as the functionality and aesthetic appeal of a fireplace, they are also a great way to increase the value of your home, you could boost the value of your property by up to 12% simply by adding a fireplace in it. Yes, a standard fireplace may be too big and overwhelming in a small space, but a carefully selected fireplace can give you the functionality of a heat source, a more comfortable home to relax in at the end of a hard day, and a more valuable property.