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The Ventless Gel Fireplace Blog
By Jessica Brylan
2008-Aug-2 - Providing for Entertainment in Your Home
By: Jessica Brylan
There's nothing like having company over for some good ol' evening entertainment. But, that can go either way. It reminds me of an old Friends episode where Monica was trying to throw Rachel a birthday party, but her parents couldn't get along. So, they threw two birthday parties. One at Monica's and one across the hall at Chandler and Joey's.
Company was literally trying to escape Monica's party because everyone was having so much more fun across the hall. One reason was, Chandler and Joey actually knew how to have fun and keep people entertained. Another thing was that Monica kept people overly occupied and had very strict guidelines for everything her visitors did.
You Have to Have Balance
Finding balance between an all-out no-holds-barred party and a formal gathering with strict regulations is always best for a party. You don't want Animal House and you don't want a funeral either. So, let's loosen up and learn how to entertain the company rather than drive them away.
1 - Have Activities
2 - Perk Interests
3 - Bring Attraction
These things don't take having all the money in the world. You can easily entertain with things you have laying around the house or that won't cost much to purchase.
Have Activities
When people come over, let them dictate how the night is going to go. If they want to talk and talking is what everyone's doing, no one's skipping a beat, the conversation is not lagging one bit, why stop it? Let them go. But, when the party starts to die and it's still early yet, have activities just in case.
Gauge your company though. The younger generation might get into some video game competition. Things like that get exciting for them. But, it only works if you have enough room for everyone to see the game and you keep the action going with perfectly innocent side bets. Don' t bet money. Make people perform stupid looking acts for losing. Clucking like a chicken never hurt anyone.
But, your more elderly company might actually enjoy games like poker or black jack. Be ready for anything. Have chips in place for people to throw around and you've got a party started.
Perk Interests
We all have imagination. Make the most of it. Break out your most interesting artifacts and place them in not-so-hidden, not-so-obvious places. Anything you have in your garage that you love to talk about. Paintings in the attic, pictures of your trips to foreign countries, weird furniture...etc. Anything that will beg a question can easily spawn a half an hour conversation.
One of my friends has drinking fountains. One takes fruit punch and the other takes chocolate. They don't just make for good conversation, they make for good places to have conversations too. That's the kind of thing I'm talking about.
Of course, a ventless gel fireplace is a good conversation starter. People want to know where the chimney is or where the hearth is. Guess what? There isn't one. It's just a ventless fire pumping out heat and looking good in the living room.
Bring Attraction
There are ways of decorating that will make people feel more comfortable or more interested in sticking around. I know one friend who has lighting...on the floor. It runs the length of the bar and extends out to the back patio. The great thing about it is that it's simple strips of lights that didn't cost much at all.
A dark bar with candles. Now, that's classy. It makes people want to gather there. You can place a nice little burning bin or a pebble burner on the bar. It's the lighting that's perfect for the occasion and you don't have to go out of your way to get it. Just light one of your sunjel gel fuel cans from your ventless gel fireplace and place it in a bowl with pebbles. It adds a classy look and it will raise questions.
While you're at it, place some aroma on the fire. You can place it on the pebbles or put some on the logs in the fireplace. Your home will fill up with some of the greatest smells.
Partying isn't really hard. It tends to move itself if you have everything in place. But sometimes you have to be more than prepared when people don't know what to do after arriving. Get them active and involved. They'll never forget your party.
2008-Aug-5 - Problems with Traditional Fireplaces
By: Jessica Brylan
Before I begin, you have to understand the sheer mass of traditional fireplaces these days as opposed to hundreds of years ago when a nice romantic scene included a house with a chimney. Fireplaces are being installed in just about every new house and this volume has created environmental problems.
First of all, the amount of smoke escaping into our atmosphere is causing pollution problems. Especially since most people get their wood from sellers who treat the wood so that it doesn't get rotten. Adding chemicals almost always means a problem.
Second, wood that is stored for a considerable amount of time grows a fungus. That fungus is enough to overtake a family in the house if it's strong enough. But, most of the time levels aren't that high. However, over time, burning fungus creates pollution problems as well as damage to the home.
Some European communities have passed regulations banning traditional fireplaces. They have adopted the ventless gel fireplace. Entire condominiums have taken the initiative to provide ventless gel fireplaces for each unit. It's the rising alternative to the traditional fireplace.
2008-Aug-9 - Ventless Gel Fireplace News
By: Jessica Brylan
It's phenomenal how little the world knows about ventless gel fireplaces. Gas and electric fireplaces have taken the place of traditional fireplaces for years. With each one of them, there are pros and cons. But, the ventless gel fireplace is rising as the most logical alternative. And yet, not many people know about it.
The traditional fireplace is nice and was really nice at the turn of the century. But, with clutter comes negative results. A traditional wood burning fireplace in every house as communities started to grow started causing problems that will only get worse as time moves forward. Health problems concern the burning of fungus in the home due to storage practices.
Other problems stem from fire damage that can be done in the home. It's a little less common to capture news about traditional fireplace dangers, a blog about family caregiver info and family C.A.R.E. But, they exist. Mistakes have been made. Small oversights on the part of homeowners. Sparks fly to the wooden floor. Materials fall into the fire and soon a house is burning down.
I'm going to continue with gas fireplaces tomorrow and then electric the following day. I'd like to give you a better idea of just how much the ventless gel fireplace stands out above the rest. Then, you'll understand why I'm trying to give it more attention than it already gets.
2008-Aug-13 - Three Tips for Decorating your
Fireplace
By: Jessica Brylan
There is no denying that having a fireplace in your home is beneficial to both you and your visitors. But why stop there? You can decorate your fireplace in order to make it the centerpiece of your entire home, not just one room. Remember, people are going to be looking at your fireplace, so you might as well do what you can do to make it as decorative as possible.
1. More is less! You do not need to add tons of junk to your fireplace in order to decorate it. A few well placed details will go a long way in bringing it to the forefront.
2. If you do not have a mantle on your fireplace, look into adding one. You can do this no matter if you have a built in fireplace or a free standing unit. Get as creative as you want with your mantle. Once you add this, you will have the chance to add knickknacks and other decorations.
3. Use your fireplace to express holiday joy! This is especially true during Christmas. You can hang stockings from the mantle, put a Santa Claus decoration on your fireplace, and much more. And of course, Christmas is not the only holiday where your fireplace can come into play.
Decorating a fireplace can be a lot of fun. Your options are nearly endless, and you can make changes from month to month if you so desire. Even though a fireplace without decorations will look great, you should consider sprucing it up just a bit. You will be surprised at how much this will turn your fireplace into the focus of the room.
2008-Aug-17 - Use a Fireplace to Spruce up your Basement
By: Jessica Brylan
Are you hoping to turn your basement into a luxurious escape? Are you getting ready to buy a pool table, a comfortable couch, and a big screen television? If so, you are on your way to adding a great room to the lower level of your home. But before you complete the job, there is one last thing that you may want to add. That’s right; a fireplace would go a long way in tying up all of the loose ends.
Using a fireplace to spruce up your basement is not nearly as hard as you may think. The first thing on your agenda should be to clear out a space where a fireplace would fit. Generally speaking, this is not hard to do. In fact, the only difficult part will be narrowing down all of your options, and then choosing a final resting place. You can even choose to buy a wall mounted fireplace.
If you think that you need to renovate your entire home to add a fireplace, you are a bit off. Instead of venting to the outside, you should consider buying a portable, ventless gel fireplace. This will allow you to set your fireplace wherever you please, and of course, will go a long way in saving you tons of money.
Even if you never use your basement fireplace, it is safe to say that the atmosphere of your room will take off. There is something about a fireplace that gives people a relaxed, stress free feeling.
While you are shopping for big ticket items for your basement, do not forget to pick up a fireplace as well. You may not think that you need one of these, but it will really help to make the most out of the newest room in your home!
2008-Aug-21 - Heat Reflection
By: Jessica Brylan
Heating Stones have plenty of uses. But, I don't think we are being as innovative as possible. A nice blog by Deb on Bob Vila's On The Level blog talks about heating stones that you have to plug into the wall. They get up to their programmed heat and then they hold the heat for about four hours.
That's nice for around the house. As a decorative wall unit or towel rack, heating stones do look nice while serving a larger purpose, heating your home. But, what if you could have heating stones that reflect heat from other sources.
If you had a ventless gel fireplace, you would be able to get about 9,000 BTUs of heat over a period of 3 or 4 hours. That's a romantic evening at it's best. And because the fireplace is ventless, heat is reflected throughout the room cranking the heat a little higher. Now, can you see the purpose of a heating stone that reflects heat rather than plugs into the wall and generates heat?
Do you know that it's as easy as putting aluminum on the wall and then covering it with brick or rock decorative wall design? Of course, you would want to use a thick sort of aluminum like the aluminum flashing used on roofs and aluminum siding. Simply nail it to the wall. Then, cover with red brick or gray rock decoration. The right type of decoration will be made with actual brick or rock.
Your room is warmer for much less than electric or gas heat and you have a nice addition to your living room. The ventless gel fireplace can still move around the house so it might not be a bad idea to decorate several rooms with a heat reflecting surface.
2008-Aug-25 - Gas Fireplace Review
By: Jessica Brylan
Traditional fireplaces only offered a few problems to consumers when the gas fireplace was wished into existence. The traditional fireplace was hard to light and it could be dangerous if sparks flew out of the fireplace. So, an alternative was introduced. But, it wasn't the ventless gel fireplace. It was gas.
The gas fireplace has its own problems. Even though it can be easier to light than a traditional fireplace, it is inherently more dangerous. Also, it can cause more damage.
The gas fireplace can be turned on by the flick of a switch. But, what comes out is a dangerous gas that can blow. I don't even need to get technical about this. A leak in the gas line can put your whole family in danger. Enough said.
Also, when the gas burns, it produces a water vapor. The water vapor is significant enough to rise through the ceiling, get trapped in the structure of your home and cause damage. Of the damage, you can look at having to replace your roof, ceiling, walls...etc. The water vapor for a few hours of gas usage ranges in the area of a few gallons. That's how much damage you can look forward to repairing.
Gas fireplaces have their conveniences. But, you still need a vent and you need to stay on top of the condition of your equipment. Otherwise, you're just putting your family and your home in danger.
2008-Aug-28 - Autumn Rearranging
By: Jessica Brylan
We have turned that corner again this year. Fall is coming and I’m going to love every minute of it. But, you did your spring cleaning months ago. What tradition waits for you in the fall?
Call it Autumn Rearranging. It’s the time to rearrange your home so you can settle down for the winter months to come. What to think about when you are Autumn Rearranging?
Look at how your home is arranged right now. Is it set for spring and summer? Most people do this subconsciously. Sometimes it just happens naturally. But, we’ll straighten that out in the next couple of blogs.
In the spring, people normally get out their lighter clothes like shorts and tee shirts. They find their sneakers and they get themselves cool. There are things you do to your home too that make it more of a spring and summer home.
You put blankets away and you open up the furniture. You may never catch yourself doing it. But as you’re cleaning, you might actually open the living room up when you place the recliner and the loveseat a little further apart. The coffee table gets moved a few extra inches away from the couch.
Even your dining room table might take on a few changes. There are many dining rooms that don’t have one window in them. But there is just something inviting about a window, especially with a cup of coffee.
If your dining room has a beautiful window that really gets the sun in the morning hours, I’d be willing to bet that the chairs tend to turn slightly to the side when people sit at the dining room table. They might just stay that way all day. Because spring and summer eating is often done on the patio or in the living room. We as a new generation of family have adopted such interesting habits.
Now that you can see how your home is arranged for spring and summer, that’s what we’ll be talking about when we talk about Autumn Rearranging. See you then…
2008-Oct-10 - Autumn Rearranging Again
By: Jessica Brylan
Yes, the cold weather has hit. That’s the true mark of autumn. And as I said in my last blog, I will be visiting the tradition of Autumn Rearranging.
I think I just might be the first person to ever put it into terms. Everybody does it, but rarely is it talked about what changes go on throughout the home when the fall months hit.
Normally when the cold weather hits, we put our cool clothes away and get out sweaters, sweatpants and heavy socks. We break out the blankets and the windows go closed for good. Some people start winterizing with products like caulking on cracks, weather stripping doors and shrink wrap on the windows.
What happens to the furniture in the home? It gets closer to each other. As a study this year, leave things alone. Make a conscious effort not to put the furniture closer to each other. Just let others do it on their own. Don’t say anything to them about the experiment you are conducting.
Sit back and watch as chairs get pulled together. The coffee table will get closer to the couch. And everything will begin to focus around the what?...that’s right! The fireplace!
2008-Oct-19 - Winterize This Year: Save on Your Energy Bills
By: Jessica Brylan
In recent posts, I touched on winterizing. The cold has set in so fast where I live, it’s crazy. I was in shorts earlier this week. Now, I’m bundled up merely a few days later.
I do look forward to the Indian summer coming around the corner. That will give me a couple of days to winterize before the cold comes through again.
Weather Stripping Around the Doors
A simple investment of about $30 can save upwards of 20% in heating bills this year. That can add up to a significant savings. Since you open your doors all year around, your doors will need a closer look than anything else. If you weather strip and block the air that gets through cracks, you’ll be able to keep your house warm and your bills low.
Shrink Wrap the Windows
While less air gets through the windows than the doors, you still have to look at them closely for any drafts. Shrink wrap can really help save you some money and keep your house warm. Place shrink wrap over your windows, blow it with a blow dryer and leave it all winter. It comes off really easy in the spring.
A Blanket for the Water Heater
I bet you I can give you one that you’ve never heard of before. If you have, forgive me for assuming. But, it’s a good idea to get a blanket for your water heater. It will keep your water heater cycling less often because water in the heater stays hotter longer.
Ventless Gel Fireplace
Ventless Gel Fireplaces are technically not considered a heating source. But, they can take the heat off a room quickly. Sunjel can burn for about three hours at about 3,000 BTUs. That means that if you have done everything else, you’ve weather stripped the doors, shrink wrapped the windows and blanketed the water heater, you’ll take the chill off of a room and it will stay that way.
This year, you can have a rather cost effective winter if you do everything you have to do to keep your home warm. You’ll love looking at your electric bill and gas bill this year. That just may be a first.
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